HARRY  (ASTLE/\ON 


BOY  TRAPPER  SERIES. 


THE 


BURIED  TREASURE; 

OB, 

OLD  JORDAN'S  «  HAUNT." 


BY  HARRY  CASTLEMON, 

AUTHOR  or  "TH«  PRANK  NELSON  SERIES."  "THE  SPORTSMAN'S  CLOB 

"GUNBOAT   SERIES,"  *C. 


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Othfr  I'l.liiin-  *  in  Preparation. 


Entered  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1877,  by 

PORTER  A  COATES, 
In  the  Office  of  the  Librarian  of  Congress,  at  Washington. 


PZ 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  I. 
Godfrey  Evans Page  5 

CHAPTER  II. 
Godfrey  builds  Air-castles 22 


CHAPTER  III. 
Dan's  strategy     .         .........     36 

CHAPTER  IV. 
The  Shooting  match   .........     54 

CHAPTER  V. 
Godfrey  finds  something     ........     72 

CHAPTER  VI. 
Our  friends,  the  Gordons     ........     90 

CHAPTER  VII. 
The  new  comers  ..........  105 

CHAPTER  VIII. 
Dan  makes  a  discovery       ........  125 

CHAPTER  IX. 
Old  Jordan's  "  haunt  "         ........  141 

CHAPTER  X. 
What  Godfrey's  visitor  wanted  .......  157 


CHAPTER  XL 
Old  Jordan  shows  himself  ........  176 

(iii) 


484058 

LIBRARY 


IV                                          CONTENTS. 
CHAPTER  XII. 

.          Page  194 

CHAPTER  XIII. 

.  215 

CHAPTER  XIV. 

.  231 

CHAPTER  XV. 

.  248 

CHAPTER  XVI. 

.  206 

THE 

BURIED   TREASURE. 


CHAPTER  I. 

GODFREY  EVANS. 

"\~Y7~AL,  of  all  the  dinners  that  ever  a  white  man 
sot  down  to,  this  yere  is  the  beat !" 

The  speaker  was  Godfrey  Evans — a  tall,  raw- 
boned  man,  dressed  in  a  tattered,  brown  jean  suit. 
lie  was  barefooted,  his  toil-hardened  hands  and 
weather-beaten  face  were  sadly  soiled  and  begrimed, 
and  his  hair  and  whiskers  looked  as  though  they  had 
never  been  made  acquainted  with  a  comb.  As  he 
spoke  he  drew  an  empty  nail-keg  from  its  corner, 
placed  a  board  over  the  top  of  it,  and  seating  him- 
self, ran  his  eye  over  the  slender  stock  of  viands  his 
wife  had  just  placed  on  the  table. 

The  man's  appearance  was  in  strict  keeping  with 
his  surroundings.  The  cabin  in  which  he  lived  and 
everything  it  contained  told  of  the  most  abject 

(5) 


6  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

poverty.  The  building,  which  was  made  of  rough, 
unhewn  logs,  could  boast  of  but  one  room  and  a  loft, 
to  which  access  was  gained  by  a  ladder  fastened 
against  the  wall.  It  had  no  floor  and  no  windows, 
all  the  light  being  admitted  through  a  dilapidated 
door,  which  every  gust  of  wind  threatened  to  shake 
from  its  hinges,  and  the  warmth  being  supplied  by 
an  immense  fire-place  with  a  stick  chimney,  which 
occupied  nearly  the  whole  of  one  end  of  the  cabin. 
There  were  no  chairs  to  be  seen — the  places  of  these 
useful  articles  being  supplied  by  empty  nail-kegs  and 
blocks  of  wood ;  and  neither  were  there  any  beds — a 
miserable  "  shake-down  "  in  one  corner  being  the 
best  in  this  line  that  the  cabin  could  afford.  Every- 
thing looked  as  if  it  were  about  to  fall  to  pieces.  Even 
the  rough  board  table  on  which  the  dinner  was  placed 
would  have  tumbled  over,  had  it  not  been  propped 
up  against  the  wall. 

Godfrey  Evans  had  seen  better  days.  He  had 
once  been  comparatively  well  off  in  the  world ;  but 
he  had  lost  all  his  property  through  no  fault  of  his 
own,  and  the  loss  so  disheartened  him  that  he  would 
make  no  effort  to  accumulate  more.  At  his  time  of 
life  it  was  too  late  to  begin  again  with  empty  hands, 
he  said ;  so  he  accepted  the  situation,  but  with  a  very 


THE   BURIED   TREASURE.  7 

bad  grace,  and  spent  the  most  of  his  time  in  roaming 
about  the  woods  with  his  gun  on  his  shoulder,  and 
the  rest  in  bemoaning  his  altered  circumstances,  and 
denouncing  those  of  his  neighbors  who  were  more 
fortunate  than  himself. 

Godfrey's  family  consisted  of  a  wife  and  two  sons 
— the  latter  aged  respectively  seventeen  and  fifteen 
years.  His  wife  was  a  meek-faced  woman  who  had 
seen  a  world  of  care  and  trouble,  and  who,  while 
submitting  patiently  to  her  hard  lot,  hoped  for  better 
things,  and  placed  unbounded  confidence  in  her 
youngest  son,  David,  who  was  animated  by  an  ener- 
getic, manly  spirit,  which  contrasted  strangely  with 
his  father's  indolence  and  indifference.  Godfrey 
seemed  content  to  pass  the  remainder  of  his  days  in 
that  hovel,  destitute  of  all  the  comforts,  and  even 
suffering  for  many  of  the  necessaries  of  life;  but 
David  was  not.  He  had  high  aspirations,  had  formed 
plans,  and,  better  than  that,  he  had  perseverance  and 
pluck  enough  to  carry  them  out.  Of  him  and  his 
brother,  Daniel,  we  shall  have  more  to  say  as  our 
story  progresses.  It  will  be  enough,  now,  to  tell  the 
reader  that  if  they  had  been  utter  strangers,  they 
could  not  have  been  more  unlike  each  other.  David 
was  of  a  lively,  cheerful  disposition,  and  his  entry 


8  THE    BURIED   TREASURE. 

into  the  comfortless  hovel  lie  called  home,  was  like  a 
ray  of  sunshine  bursting  through  a  storm  cloud. 
Daniel,  on  the  other  hand,  was  like  his  father,  morose 
and  sullen,  and  when  he  came  home  from  the  woods 
or  the  steamboat  landing,  where  he  spent  the  most  of 
his  time,  it  seemed  as  if  a  thunder  cloud  had  suddenly 
settled  down  over  the  cabin. 

Having  drawn  his  nail-keg  up  to  the  table,  Godfrey 
thrust  his  hand  into  his  pocket,  pulled  out  his  jack- 
knife,  and  picking  up  the  fork  that  lay  beside  his 
broken  plate,  held  the  two  close  together  and  looked 
at  them  intently  for  several  minutes.  The  fork  was 
not  such  a  fork  as  the  most  of  us  use  at  our  meals. 
It  was  simply  a  piece  of  cane  sharpened  at  one  end ; 
and  perhaps  this  story  will  fall  into  the  hands  of  some 
who  can  remember,  or  who  have  heard  it  said,  that 
tlu-re  was  a  time,  not  so  very  long  ago,  when  a  good 
many  families  in  the  South,  who  had  all  their  lives 
bi-en  accustomed  to  something  better,  had  their  choice 
between  employing  their  fingers  at  table,  or  using 
such  an  implement  as  this  we  have  just  described. 

u  Look  at  this  yere,  now,"  said  Godfrey,  "jest 
look  at  it,  I  say,  the  hul  on  yer,  an'  then  ax  yerselves 
if  it  aint  a  purty  pass  fur  a  man  to  come  to,  who  had 
a  nice  house,  a  fine  plantation  and  four  niggers  of  his 
own,  only  twelve  short  years  ago  !  Eh  ?" 


THE    BURIED    TREASURE.  9 

"We  can't  help  it,  father,"  said  Mrs.  Evans,  who 
knew  that  her  angry  husband  expected  her  to  say 
something.  "  We  had  comforts  once,  and  we  might 
have  them  now  if — if " 

"Yes,  in  course  we  might,  if  them  Yanks  had 
stayed  to  hum,  whar  they  belonged,"  Godfrey  almost 
shouted.  "  We  didn't  do  nothin'  to  them  that  they 
should  come  down  here  an'  burn  our  houses  an'  cot- 
ton gins,  an'  steal  our  things,  did  we  ?" 

"  The  Federals  didn't  do  it  all,  father,"  said  David. 
"  They  burned  our  buildings,  just  as  they  burned  the 
buildings  of  almost  every  man  who  was  in  the  rebel 
army  ;  but  we  should  have  had  enough  left  to  get 
along  with,  if  Redburn's  guerillas  had  left  us  alone. 
They  didn't  leave  us  a  bed  to  sleep  on  !" 

"  That's  what  makes  me  so  pizen  savage  agin  every- 
body," exclaimed  Godfrey,  pounding  with  the  handle 
of  his  knife  on  the  table.  "  The  men  what  wore 
the  same  colored  jacket  as  I  did,  came  here  and  tuk 
what  the  Yanks  left  us.  Why  didn't  they  go  up  to 
Gordon's  an'  clean  them  out  too  ?  Kase  Gordon  was 
a  gen'ral,  that's  why.  That  fuss  was  a  rich  man's 
war,  an'  a  poor  man's  fight,  that's  jest  what  that  fuss 
was  ;  an'  everybody  can  see  it  now  that  it  is  done  past. 
Men  like  me  had  to  stay  in  the  ranks  an'  carry  a 


10  THE    BURIED   TREASURE. 

musket,  an'  starve  an'  freeze  in  the  trenches — that's 
what  we  had  to  do ;  while  rich  planters,  like  Gordon, 
lived  high  in  their  tents,  rode  their  fine  hosses,  stole 
the  sanitary  goods  the  Yanks  sent  to  their  fellers  in 
Richmond,  an'  thought  they  was  a  fightin'  for  the 
'federacy." 

"  Why,  father,  General  Gordon  was  wounded  no 
less  than  three  times,"  said  David. 

"  S'pose  he  was,"  replied  Godfrey. 

"  An'  while  he  was  fighting  the  Feds  in  front  of 
Richmond,  some  more  of  them  came  here  and  burned 
down  his  splendid  house,  that  ours  wouldn't  have 
made  a  woodshed  to,  and  stole  everything  his  family 
had." 

"No,  they  didn't  do  nothing  of  the  kind,"  an- 
swered his  father,  almost  savagely.  "  They  burned 
his  house,  I  know,  an'  sarved  him  right,  too.  I'm 
glad  of  it ;  but  as  fur  stealin'  everything  the  Gor- 
dons had,  that  ain't  so.  No  'taint.  The  gen'ral's 
got  heaps  an'  stacks  of  money  now." 

"  I  don't  believe  it,"  said  David,  bluntly. 

"  If  you  want  me  to  lay  that  cowhide  over  yer 
shoulders  right  peart,  you  jest  conspute  me  that  ar 
way  onct  more,"  said  Godfrey,  setting  down  his  cup 
of  buttermilk.  "Whar  did  them  speckled  ponies 


THE    BURIED   TREASURE.  11 

come  from  that  Don  and  Bert  ride  around  the  coun- 
try, I'd  like  to  know,  if  the  Gordons  hain't  got  no 
money  ?  I  was  up  thar  the  other  day  when  it  rained 
so  hard,  an'  the  gen'ral,  bein'  mighty  perlite,  axed 
me  would  I  come  in  an  set  till  the  storm  was  over. 
Wai,  I  went,  an'  what  did  I  see  ?  The  fust  thing 
I  laid  my  eyes  onto  was  a  pianner  that  them  gals 
thumps  on  when  they  had  oughter  be  workin'  in  the 
kitchen.  They  was  a  settin'  the  table  fur  dinner, 
too ;  an'  didn't  I  see  silver  forks  thar,  an'  white- 
handled  knives,  an'  chiny,  an'  all  them  things  that 
would  jest  set  me  onto  my  feet  agin  if  I  had  the 
money  they  cost  ?  I  did,  I  bet  ye.  Hain't  got  no 
money,  hey,  the  Gordons  hain't?  I  know  better. 
They  have,  an'  that's  what  makes  me  so  pizen  savage. 
How  have  they  got  any  more  right  to  have  to  nor  I 
have  ?  We  both  fit  the  Yanks,  an'  I  made  a  poor 
man  of  myself  by  it,  while  the  gen'ral  is  jest  as  well 
off  as  he  ever  was.  Things  ain't  fixed  right  in  this 
yere  'arth,  no  how  !" 

"  Thar  they  come  now,"  said  Dan,  who  sat  where 
he  could  look  out  of  the  door  and  up  the  road  that 
led  toward  General  Gordon's  plantation.  "  Thar  they 
come,  ridin'  them  circus-hosses,  and  talkin'  an' 
laughin'  as  though  they  was  the  happiest  fellens  in 


12  TUB   BURIED   TREASURE. 

the  world.  Everybody  is  happy  'ceptin'  us.  If  I 
had  what  one  of  them  ponies  is  wuth,  I  wouldn't 
have  to  wear  no  sich  clothes  as  these  yere,"  added 
Dan,  raising  his  arm  and  pulling  his  sleeve  around  so 
that  he  could  see  the  gaping  rent  in  the  elbow.  "  If 
I  could  run  one  of  them  hosses  off  an'  sell  it  without 
being  ketched,  I'd  do  it  to-night !" 

"  0,  Daniel,  don't  talk  so,"  said  his  mother 
quickly. 

"  An'  why  not,  I'd  like  to  know  ?"  retorted  Dan. 
"  lias  them  fellers  any  right  to  go  a  gollopin'  about 
the  country  on  horseback,  while  I've  got  to  hoof  it 
all  the  while,  an'  go  barefoot  too  ?" 

"  No,  they  hain't,"  said  Godfrey.  "  They've  got 
jest  as  much  right  to  hoof  it  as  any  of  us  ;  an'  we've 
got  the  same  right  to  ride  on  horseback  that  they 
has.  We  could  do  it  onct,  an'  we'll  do  it  agin  !  yes, 
we  will,  fur  times  is  goin'  to  change  with  us,  an* 
purty  soon  too.  Now,  don't  forget  what  I'm  tellin' 
ye ;  ye'll  see  the  eyes  of  the  Gordons,  an'  all  the 
rest  of  the  folks  about  here,  a  stickin'  out  as  big  as 
that"  said  Godfrey,  flourishing  his  clenched  hand 
over  the  table.  "  As  big  as  that,  I  say,  an'  afore 
many  days,  too — p'rhaps  next  week  !" 

"What's  goin'  to  happen,  pop?"  asked  Dan. 


THE    BURIED    TREASURE.  13 


"  Something  that'll- 


Godfrey  glanced  out  at  the  door,  and  seeing  that 
the  boys,  whose  approach  had  started  the  family  on 
this  subject  of  conversation,  were  near  at  hand,  put 
on  a  very  wise  look  and  winked  knowingly  at  his  son, 
who  was  obliged  to  restrain  his  curiosity  for  the 
present. 

We  must  stop  here  long  enough  to  say  a  word  con- 
cerning the  new-comers,  as  it  is  possible  that  we  shall 
often  meet  them  hereafter.  Their  names  were  Don- 
ald and  Hubert  Gordon,  and  they  lived  about  a  mile 
from  the  cabin  in  which  Godfrey  Evans  and  his 
family  lived.  And  in  what  part  of  the  world  was 
that?  It  doesn't  much  matter,  for  as  there  is  more 
truth  than  fiction  in  some  of  the  incidents  we  are 
about  to  describe,  we  do  not  care  to  go  too  much  into 
details.  It  will  be  enough  to  say  that  the  scene  of 
our  story  is  laid,  and  that  all  the  actors  therein  lived, 
in  one  of  our  Southern  States  not  very  far  from  the 
Mississippi  river.  As  our  tale  progresses  some  at- 
tentive reader,  who  has  paid  close  attention  to  his 
history,  may  be  able  to  locate  the  exact  spot. 

Two  boys  with  more  cheerful,  happy  dispositions 
than  Don  and  Bert  Gordon  possessed,  it  would  be 
hard  to  find  anywhere.  Don  was  sixteen  years  of 


14  THE   BURIED  TREASURE. 

age  and  his  brother  one  year  younger.  The  former 
was  a  robust,  manly  youth,  who  took  great  delight  in 
all  out-of-doors  sports,  and  who,  like  many  other 
healthy  youngsters,  had  some  glaring  faults  that  were 
the  occasion  of  no  little  anxiety  to  his  father  and 
mother.  One  was  his  great  propensity  for  mischief. 
lie  was  not  fond  of  books  or  school,  but  any  wild 
scheme  for  "fun,"  as  he  called  it,  particularly  if  it 
involved  some  risk  on  the  part  of  those  who  partici- 
pated in  it,  would  enlist  his  hearty  sympathy  and  co- 
operation. This  led  to  the  most  unpleasant  episode 
in  Don's  life.  He  was  a  student  at  a  certain  high 
school  in  a  neighboring  city,  and  being  thrown  into 
the  company  of  uneasy  spirits  like  himself,  he  very 
soon  so  far  forgot  the  solemn  promises  he  had  made 
his  mother  before  leaving  home,  that  he  assisted  in 
laying  plans  for  mischief  which  others  carried  into 
execution.  After  that  but  little  urging  was  neces- 
sary to  induce  him  to  take  part  in  them  himself; 
and  being  at  last  detected  in  some  act  that  had  been 
strictly  forbidden,  he  was  promptly  expelled  from 
the  school. 

It  was  wonderful  what  a  change  that  made  in  Don 
Gordon.  He  began  to  see  that  his  conduct  was  not 
calculated  to  gain  and  hold  the  respect  of  those  whose 


THE   BURIED   TREASURE.  15 

respect  was  worth  having,  and  thus  far  his  resolution 
to  do  better  had  been  firmly  adhered  to.  There  is  a 
turning  point  in  everybody's  existence — a  time  when 
a  decision  made  affects  one's  whole  after  career — and 
who  knows  but  this  may  have  been  the  critical  period 
in  Don's  life  ?  It  was  not  the  disgrace  attending  his 
expulsion  from  school  that  awoke  him,  for  that  had 
a  different  effect.  It  made  him  spiteful  and  rebellious. 
It  was  the  treatment  he  received  after  he  reached 
home.  Fortunately  his  father  and  mother  were  the 
kindest  parents  in  the  world,  and  the  friendly  talk 
they  had  with  Don  on  the  evening  of  the  day  he 
arrived  at  home,  opened  the  young  man's  eyes ;  and 
every  promise  he  made  then  had  been  faithfully  kept. 
He  and  his  brother  were  now  prosecuting  their  studies 
at  home  under  the  direction  of  a  private  tutor  who 
lived  in  the  house  with  them. 

Bert  Gordon  was  not  like  his  brother  in  anything 
except  his  appearance.  His  features  resembled  Don's, 
but  instead  of  the  latter 's  tough,  wiry  body,  he  had 
a  slender  little  figure  that  could  endure  but  trifling 
exposure  and  hardship,  and  a  delicate  constitution 
that  had  been  badly  shattered  by  the  plague  of  that 
south-western  region — the  fever  and  ague.  He  took 
but  little  interest  in  the  violent  sports  of  which  his 


16  THE    BURIED   TREASURE. 

brother  was  so  fond  ;  and  if  he  had  consulted  his  own 
inclinations,  he  would  any  day  have  chosen  an  easy- 
chair  and  a  good  book  in  preference  to  a  morning's 
gallop.  But  the  doctor  insisted  on  daily  exercise, 
and  that  was  one  reason  why  General  Gordon  had 
purchased  the  "  speckled  ponies"  which  were  so  ob- 
noxious to  Godfrey  Evans  and  his  son  Dan. 

The  ponies  were  beauties,  and  Dan  called  them 
"circus  bosses"  because  their  color  was  piebald,  like 
that  of  a  performing  steed  he  had  once  seen  in  a  small 
show  that  stopped  for  a  day  at  Rochdale,  as  the  steam- 
boat-landing three  miles  distant  was  called.  Their 
long,  wavy  manes  reached  to  their  knees,  their  tails 
swept  the  ground  as  they  walked,  and  their  favorite 
gait  was  an  easy  amble  which  scarcely  moved  their 
riders  in  the  saddles.  They  were  not  fiery  or  swift 
enough  to  suit  Don,  who  always  went  at  a  high-pres- 
sure rate,  but  they  suited  Bert  very  well.  They 
would  stand  fire  like  old  cavalry  horses,  and  many  a 
fine  bunch  of  quails  and  squirrels  had  their  owners 
shot  from  their  backs. 

As  the  boys  came  ambling  along,  talking  and 
laughing  with  each  other  as  though  they  felt  at  peace 
with  themselves  and  all  the  world,  the  inmates  of  the 
cabin  turned  to  look  at  them. 


THE   BURIED  TREASURE.  17 

"Another  dog,"  growled  Godfrey,  as  his  eyes 
rested  on  a  splendid  young  pointer  that  trotted  along 
behind  Don's  horse.  "  They've  got  a  new  dog  every 
day.  What  it  takes  to  keep  them  wuthless  curs 
would  make  me  rich !" 

"  They  are  not  worthless  curs,"  said  David,  in  a 
low  tone.  "  They  are  fine  hunting  dogs,  and  the 
general  has  one  that  cost  him  a  hundred  dollars !" 

"  An'  the  Gordons  hain't  got  no  money,  I  think  I 
heared  ye  say,"  sneered  his  father.  "  How  then  can 

•/  •/  / 

they  buy  dogs  with  a  hundred  dollars,  I'd  like  to 
know  ?" 

"  Don't  talk  so  loud,"  interrupted  David.  "  You 
don't  want  them  to  hear  you,  do  you  ?" 

"  I  don't  keer  who  hears  me  when  I  say " 

Just  then  there  was  a  clatter  of  hoofs  in  front  of 
the  cabin,  which  ceased  suddenly  as  the  new-comers 
drew  rein  before  the  open  door. 

"  Is  David  at — 0,  I  beg  pardon,"  exclaimed  a 
cheery  voice.  "  We  did  not  know  you  were  at  din- 
ner. We  will  wait,  as  we  are  in  no  hurry." 

"  I'm  here,  and  ready  to  serve  you  any  way  I 
can,"  said  David,  rising  from  the  block  of  wood  which 
served  him  for  a  chair.  "  I  have  finished  my  dinner." 

"  All  right,"  said  Don.  "  I've  brought  you  a  new 
2 


18  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

dog  to  break  for  me.  Isn't  he  a  beauty  ?  He  is  a 
present  from  a  friend  living  in  Memphis.  He  is  five 
months  old,  and  as  I  found  him  standing  the  chick- 
ens in  the  yard  this  morning,  I  think  it  high  time  he 
was  taught  something.  I'll  give  you  what  I  promised, 
and  what  we  gave  you  for  breaking  the  others." 

While  Don  was  speaking,  Godfrey,  who  sat  within 
reach  of  his  son,  turned  about  on  his  barrel  and  slily 
pulled  David  by  the  sleeve  of  his  coat ;  but  the  boy 
paid  no  attention  to  him — that  is,  he  did  not  look  at 
him.  But  he  did  pull  his  sleeve  out  of  his  father's 
grasp,  and  move  toward  the  other  side  of  the  door 
out  of  reach. 

"I'll  do  the  best  I  can  with  him,"  said  David. 

"And  that  will  be  as  well  as  anybody  can  do," 
returned  Don.  "  We  will  leave  him  in  your  charge 
and  I  hope  the  next  time  I  see  him,  I  can  take  him 
to  the  field  for  a  good  day's  sport.  Take  the  best  of 
care  of  him,  for  he  is  a  valuable  animal." 

David  caught  the  pointer  by  a  collar  he  wore 
around  his  neck,  and  led  him  behind  the  cabin  to  a 
kennel  he  had  there,  while  the  brothers,  after  lifting 
their  hats  to  Mrs.  Evans,  turned  about  and  galloped 
away. 

"You're  a  purty  son,  you  are,"  said  Godfrey,  as 


THE   BURIED   TREASURE.  19 

David,  having  secured  the  pointer,  came  back  and 
seated  himself  on  his  block  of  wood  again.  "  Didn't 
yer  feel  me  a  pullin'  an'  a  haulin'  at  yer  coat,  an' 
tryin'  to  tell  yer  not  to  promise  to  break  that  pup  fur 
them  'ristocrats  ?" 

"  I  did,"  answered  David. 
"  Then  why  didn't  ye  pay  some  heed  to  it  ?" 
"Because  I  want  the  ten  dollars — that's  why." 
"Ten  dollars!"    repeated    Godfrey,  opening  his 
eyes.     "  Is  that  what  yer  goin'  to  get  fur  it  ?     It's 
a  heap  of  money  fur  a  boy  like  you  to  make  so  easy, 
an'  that's  just  what  makes  me  'spise  them  Gordons 
so.     They've  got  ten  dollars  to  pay  fur  breakin'  a 
pup  that  haint  wuth  his  salt,  an'  I  haint  got  ten  cents 
to  buy  grub  with.     Just  look  at  this  yere !" 

Godfrey  went  on  moving  his  jack-knife  over  the 
table  which  was  supplied  with  nothing  but  corn  bread, 
fat  bacon  and  buttermilk  in  the  way  of  eatables  and 
drinkables. 

"  Now  aint  this  a  purty  mess  for  a  white  man  an'  a 
gentleman  to  set  down  to  ?  If  I  couldn't  remember 
the  time  when  things  was  different,  it  wouldn't  be 
nigh  so  hard ;  but  I  can.  'Taint  so  very  long  ago 
that  we  had  fresh  meat,  an'  coffee,  an'  pies,  an'  cakes, 
an'  light  bread  fur  grub,  an'  I  had  a  pipe  of  store 


20  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

tobacker  to  smoke  arter  eatin'  it;  but  now — dog- 
gone sich  luck  !"  cried  Godfrey,  striking  the  table 
such  a  blow  with  his  open  hand  that  the  dishes  jumped 
into  the  air,  and  the  cracked  pitcher,  which  held  what 
was  left  of  the  buttermilk,  fell  in  pieces,  allowing  its 
contents  to  run  out  among  the  plates. 

"  Thar's  something  else  gone  up,"  said  Godfrey, 
his  anger  appeased  for  the  moment  by  the  sight  of 
the  ruins  of  the  pitcher.  "  An'  I  haint  got  no  stamps 
to  buy  another.  Dave,  I  don't  keer  if  ye  be  goin'  to 
get  ten  dollars  fur  it,  don't  ye  tech  that  pinter  pup 
'ceptin'  to  tote  him  back  where  he  belongs.  Do  ye 
hear?" 

"I  reckon  I  do,"  replied  David. 

"  Wai,  be  ye  goin'  to  mind  what  I  say  to  ye  ?" 

"  No,  I  aint." 

"Ye  haint?  I  say  to  ye,  boy,"  exclaimed  God- 
frey, raising  his  hand  over  the  table  again,  "  boy,  I 
say  to  ye " 

"Now,  pop,  don't  break  no  more  dishes,"  inter- 
rupted Dan,  "  'kase  if  ye  do,  we'll  have  to  eat  off'n 
bark  plates  purty  soon,  an'  drink  out'n  gourds.  Let 
Dave  break  the  pinter  pup  if  he  wants  to.  What 
odds  does  it  make  to  you  ?" 

"  It  makes  a  heap  of  odds,  the  fust  thing  ye  know," 


THE   BURIED   TREASURE.  21 

replied  his  father.  "  Kase  they's  'ristocrats,  an' 
we've  got  just  as  good  a  right  to  have  ten  dollars  to 
pay  somebody  fur  breakin'  our  huntin'  dogs,  as  they 
have.  An'  'sides,  don't  they  make  things  wuss  fur 
poor  folks  like  us  nor  they'd  oughter  ?  They  do,  an' 
this  is  the  way  they  go  about  it:  Look  at  them 
pack  of  hound  dogs  they  brought  down  from  Kaintuck 
last  summer  !  I  don't  say  nothing  about  the  money 
they  throwed  away  when  they  bought  'em,  an'  which 
was  more'n  enough  to  keep  all  our  jaws  a  waggin' 
fur  one  good  year,  I  bet  ye,  an'  on  good  grub  too, 
but  I  jest  axes  ye,  what's  them  hound  dogs  fur  ? 
Why  just  as  soon  as  the  leaves  begin  to  fall,  them 
youngsters  will  take  to  the  swamps,  an'  them  hound 
dogs  will  go  a  tearin'  an'  a  yelpin'  through  these 
woods  at.sich  a  rate,  that  the  fust  thing  we  know 
the  game  will  all  be  done  drove  out  of  the  country, 
an'  we  can't  get  nu  deer  nor  bar  meat  fur  grub. 
That's  what  makes  me  'spise  them  hound  dogs  so." 

These  remarks  of  his  father's  recalled  to  Dan's 
mind  an  incident  that  had  happened  during  the 
previous  spring.  He  brightened  up  suddenly  as 
if  he  were  thinking  of  something  that  afforded 
him  infinite  satisfaction. 


22  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 


CHAPTER  II. 

GODFREY  BUILDS  AIR-CASTLES. 

hound  dogs  needn't  worry  you  none,"  said 
Dan.  "  I'll  take  keer  of  them !" 

"  What  be  ye  goin'  to  do  ?"  asked  his  father. 

"  I'm  goin'  to  make  them  two  fellers  what  owns 
'em  promise  to  let  my  things  they  finds  in  the  woods 
alone,  or " 

Here  Dan  glanced  hastily  at  his  brother.  David 
was  looking  intently  at  his  plate,  but  the  expression 
on  his  face  told  that  he  was  listening  with  all  his  ears. 
So  Dan  did  not  finish  the  sentence,  but  raised  his  hand 
to  his  face  and  shut  one  eye  as  if  he  were  glancing 
along  the  barrel  of  a  rifle. 

"  Goin'  to  shoot  'em,  be  ye  ?"  exclaimed  his  father. 
"  Wai,  say  so  then,  and  don't  be  afraid.  Nobody 
ain't  agoin'  to  harm  ye  fur  it." 

"  Yes,"  said  Dan  doggedly,  seeing  that  his  secret 
was  out.  "  I'm  goin'  to  shoot  'em  !" 

"  You  hadn't  better  stay  about  here  after  you  do 


THE    BURIED    TREASURE.  23 

it,"  said  David.  "  The  general  will  have  the  law  on 
you." 

"  How'll  he  find  out  who  done  it,  I'd  like  to 
know  ?"  snapped  his  brother.  "An',  'sides,  hain't 
I  got  jest  as  much  right  to  spile  his  things  as  his  boys 
have  to  spile  mine  ?  Didn't  I  meet  'em  one  day  last 
spring  as  they  were  ridin'  out  of  the  woods  on  them 
circus  hosses  of  their'n,  an'  didn't  they  tell  me  that 
they'd  pulled  down  more'n  a  dozen  turkey  traps 
they'd  found  among  the  hills,  kase  it  was  agin  the 
law,  or,  if  it  wasn't  it  had  oughter  be,  to  ketch  tur- 
keys at  that  time  of  the  year  ?  An'  didn't  I  go 
straight  to  the  woods  when  I  left  them,  an'  didn't  I 
find  that  it  was  my  own  traps  they  had  pulled  down  ? 
You're  right  I  did ;  an'  I  said  then  that  I'd  get  even 
with  'em  some  day  fur  that  same  piece  of  work.  You 
want  to  keep  a  close  eye  on  that  pinter  pup,"  he 
added  shaking  a  warning  finger  at  his  brother. 

"I  believe  you,"  answered  David.  "A  fellow 
who  will  take  revenge  on  a  dumb  brute  for  something 
his  owner  did  to  him,  is  mean  enough  for  anything, 
and  perhaps  I  had  better  take  good  care  of  myself, 
too.  If  you  intend  to  hurt  the  dog  say  so,  and  I  will 
take  him  back  where  he  belongs." 

"  Wai,  seem'  it's  you,  I  wont  tech  him,"  said  Dan, 


24  THE    BURIED    TREASURE. 

with  more  eagerness  and  haste  than  the  circumstances 
seemed  to  warrant.  "  But  arter  his  owner  gets  him 
in  his  hands,  he  wants  to  watch  out.  Now,  pop," 
added  Dan,  seeing  that  his  father  was  about  to  speak, 
"  don't  you  go  to  raisin'  a  row.  Let  Dave  break  the 
dog,  if  he  wants  to.  It  don't  cost  you  nothing. 
What  did  you  mean  when  you  said  a  little  while  ago 
that  things  is  a  goin'  to  change  with  us  ?" 

Godfrey's  face  lost  its  angry  scowl  and  brightened 
at  once. 

"  I  meant  something  that'll  extonish  ye  when  ye 
hear  it — the  hul  on  ye,"  he  replied,  with  a  cheerful 
wink  at  his  hopeful  son,  "  an'  it  won't  take  me  long 
to  tell  it,  nuther.  You  remember  that  when  the  war 
fust  broke  out,  Gen'ral  Gordon,  knowin'  which  side 
of  his  bread  had  the  butter  onto  it.  got  all  his  money 
changed  into  gold  and  silver,  and  brought  it  here  to 
his  house  an'  hid  it,  don't  ye  ?" 

Of  course  the  family  all  remembered  it.  The 
incident  had  offered  gossip  for  the  neighborhood  for 
months  after  it  happened. 

"Wai,"  continued  Godfrey,  "when  the  Yanks 
come  in  here,  them  gold  and  silver  dollars,  an'  all 
the  watches  belongin'  to  the  family,  an'  all  the  silver 
an'  chiny  dishes,  an'  them  gold  things  Mrs.  Gordon 


THE    BURIED    TREASURE.  25 

an'  her  gals  wore  around  their  wrists,  was  done  took 
an'  hid.  They  was  buried  in  the  ground,  some  in 
one  place  an'  some  in  another,  so't  the  Yanks  couldn't 
find  'em.  Mrs.  Gordon  an'  her  gals  buried  some  of 
'em  with  their  own  hands,  among  the  flower-beds  in 
front  of  the  place  whar  the  house  then  stood,  an'  one 
of  the  niggers,  ole  Jordan — ye  remember  him,  I 
reckon — done  buried  the  rest.  I  know,  kase  Jordan 
told  me  so  hisself.  Jordan,  ye  know,  was  raised  by 
the  gen'ral's  father  from  the  time  he  was  a  picaninny, 
an'  bein'  as  honest  as  a  nigger  ever  gets  to  be.  his 
missus  she  sot  a  heap  of  store  by  him,  an'  said  thar 
wasn't  no  better  servant  a  goin'. 

"  Wai,  when  the  gen'ral's  wife,  she  heared  that 
the  Yanks  was  a  comin'  with  them  gunboats  of 
their'n,  she  sent  fur  Jordan  an'  she  says  to  him : 
'  Jordan,  you  see  that  thar  bar'l  ?  Thar's  eighty 
thousand  dollars  in  gold  an'  silver  into  it.  Now, 
Jordan,  you  take  that  thar  bar'l,  an'  tote  it  off  as 
quick  as  you  can,  an'  hide  it  in  the  ground,  an'  re- 
rnember  an'  don't  let  nobody  see  ye,  an'  don't  say 
nothin'  to  nobody,  nuther.'  So  Jordan  he  done 
tuk  the  bar'l  an'  rolled  it  down  to  the  tater 
patch,  and  digged  a  hole  as  quick  as  he  could 
an'  kivered  it  up,  an'  nobody,  not  even  the  missus, 
don't  know  whar  he  put  it !" 


26  THE    BURIED   TREASURE. 

Here  Godfrey  paused  to  take  breath,  and  leaning 
his  elbows  on  the  table,  looked  from  one  to  the  other 
of  the  little  group  before  him  to  see  what  they  thought 
about  it. 

"Wai,  what  of  it?"  said  Dan,  who  was  the  first 
to  speak. 

"  What  of  it  ?"  repeated  his  father.  "  Thar's  a 
heap  of  it,  the  fust  thing  you  know — a  hul  bar'l  full ; 
an'  what's  to  hinder  us  from  gettin'  it  fur  our  own, 
I'd  like  to  know?" 

A  gleam  of  intelligence  shot  across  Dan's  swarthy 
face,  and  even  David  and  his  mother  looked  up  and 
began  to  take  some  interest  in  what  Godfrey  was 
saying. 

"  Jordan  went  off  with  the  Yanks  that  very  night, 
an'  he  hasn't  been  seed  since,"  Godfrey  went  on. 
<k  That  was  ten  year  ago,  come  next  winter,  an'  no- 
body don't  know  whar  that  bar'l  with  the  eighty 
thousand  in  gold  and  silver  is.  I  was  to  hum  on  a 
furlong  then,  ye  know,  an'  kept  hid  in  the  cane  while 
the  Yanks  was  here ;  but  I  seed  Jordan,  an'  he  told 
me  that  the  bar'l  was  in  the  tater  patch.  I  jest  hap- 
pened to  think  of  it  this  mornin'  while  I  was  a  hunt- 
in*  in  the  swamp ;  an'  then  I  axed  myself,  wasn't  I 
a  dunce  to  be  livin'  in  this  way,  when  thar  was  eighty 


THE   BURIED   TREASURE.  27 

thousand  dollars  to  be  had  fur  the  diggin'  ?  An'  I 
told  myself  yes,  I  was.  So  I  come  hum  right  quick, 
an'  I'm  done  huntin'  fur  a  livin'  now  !" 

"  Are  you  going  to  look  fur  that  barrel,  father?" 
asked  David 

"  I  aint  a  goin'  to  do  nothing  else.  I  know  right 
whar  that  tater  patch  was,  an'  me  an'  Dan  '11  dig  it 
so  full  of  holes  that  the  folks  up  to  Gordon's  house 
will  think  an  army  is  goin'  to  build  a  fort  thar." 

"  And  what  will  you  do  with  it  if  you  find  it  ?" 

"  What'll  I  do  with  it?"  cried  Godfrey,  rising  to 
his  feet,  spreading  out  his  arms  and  turning  slowly 
around  so  that  his  son  could  have  a  good  view  of  him. 
"  Can  you  look  at  me  an'  all  of  us  an'  ax  me  what 
I'll  do  with  it  ?  I'll  keep  it  fur  myself,  an'  spend 
it  like  a  lord,  too  !" 

"  Would  you  like  to  have  somebody  serve  you  that 
way  ?"  asked  David.  "  It  wouldn't  be  honest." 

"Honest!"  Godfrey  almost  screamed.  "Jest 
listen  to  him,  now !  That's  what  makes  me  'spise 
them  Gordons  so.  They  can't  keep  their  big  'risto- 
cratic  ideas  to  their  selves,  but  must  tell  'em  to  my 
boys,  an'  larn  one  of  'em  to  say  '  father '  an'  'mother,' 
'stead  of  callin'  us  'pop'  an'  'mam,'  like  he  had 
oughter  do.  An'  then  to  talk  about  my  spendin'  my 


28  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

time  a  diggin'  an'  a  huntin'  fur  that  thar  bar'l,  an' 
arter  findin'  it,  to  give  it  up  to  them  as  has  got 
more'n  their  share  already,  an'  here's  us  as  poor  as 
Job's  turkey  !  No,  sir,"  said  Godfrey,  emphatically. 
"  If  I  find  that  thar  bar'l  I'll  keep  it,  an'  say  nothing 
to  nobody." 

"But  it  belongs  to  the  Gordons,"  said  David,  not 
at  all  daunted  by  his  father's  speech,  "  and  you  have 
no  right  to  lay  a  finger  on  it." 

"  Wai,  you'll  see  if  I  don't  lay  two  whole  hands 
onto  it  if  I  can  find  it ;  an'  if  I  don't  find  it,  it  won't 
be  kase  I  don't  do  no  diggin',  I  bet  ye.  Jest  think 
of  it,"  said  Godfrey,  growing  animated  over  the 
prospect  of  so  great  and  sudden  wealth.  "  Here's 
us  been  a  livin'  like  the  pigs  in  the  gutter  all  these 
years,  when  we  might  have  been  ridin'  our  own  hosses 
an'  growin'  fat  off"  the  best  kind  of  grub !  Eighty 
thousand  dollars  !  Enough  to  fill  a  hul  bar'l  1  Why, 
one  day,  in  the  good  old  times,  when  I  was  a  talkin' 
with  the  gen'ral,.he  says  to  me :  '  Godfrey,  how  much 
is  you  wuth  ?'  Wai,  I  didn't  know,  kase  I  hadn't 
never  thought  of  it  none ;  but  I  told  him  I  had  so 
many  niggers,  wuth  so  much  a  head  ;  so  many  cow 
brutes  ;  so  many  hoss  an'  mule  brutes  ;  so  much  land ; 
in'  so  many  pig  brutes  runnin'  in  the  swamp.  The 


THE   BURIED    TREASURE.  29 

gen'ral  he  figures  it  up,  an'  tells  me  I  wus  wuth  nigh 
on  to  twelve  or  fifteen  thousand  dollars,  most  likely 
it  was  nigher  fifteen  nor  twelve.  I  tell  you  I  felt 
big  arter  that.  I  held  my  head  up  high,  like  a  steer 
in  the  corn,  an'  felt  like  axin'  every  man  I  met  did 
he  know  I  wus  wuth  fifteen  thousand  dollars,  an'  it 
all  made  with  these  yer  two  hands,  too  ?  But  eighty 
thousand  !  Whew  !  Why  didn't  I  think  of  that  bar'l 
long  ago?  I  reckin  I'll  go  down  to  the  landin'  an' 
ax  Silas  Jones  will  he  trust  me  fur  some  store  tobacker. 
I  can  tell  him  that  I'll  be  able  to  buy  his  hul  consarn 
out  next  week!" 

As  Godfrey  said  this  he  arose  from  his  barrel,  and, 
taking  his  rifle  down  from  its  place  over  the  door, 
went  out  of  the  cabin  followed  by  Dan,  who  also  car- 
ried a  rifle  on  his  shoulder.  David  and  his  mother 
watched  them  in  silence  until  they  had  passed  down 
the  road  out  of  sight,  and  then  turned  and  looked  at 
each  other. 

"  Is  it  true  about  the  barrel?"  asked  the  boy  at 
length. 

"  I  am  sure  I  don't  know,"  was  his  mother's  an- 
swer, "  and  for  the  sake  of  all  concerned  I  hope  it  is 
not.  It  is  true  that  all  the  gold  and  silver,  and  other 
valuables  belonging  to  the  Gordon  family,  were  bur- 


30  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

ied  on  the  night  the  levee  was  cut,  and  it  is  equally 
true  that  Jordan  buried  some  of  it.  He  went  down 
the  Pass  with  the  gunboats  when  they  left,  and  has 
never  been  seen  or  heard  of  since.  What  has  become 
of  him,  nobody  knows ;  and  whether  he  went  without 
telling  Mrs.  Gordon  where  he  had  hidden  the  valua- 
bles, is  a  question  that  no  one  outside  the  general's 
family  is  able  to  answer.  It  may  be  possible  that 
he  did,  for  such  things  have  happened." 

"When  and  where?"  asked  David. 

"  Right  here  in  this  neighborhood.  After  the 
war  was  over,  and  the  soldiers  began  to  return,  there 
came  to  this  landing  a  man  named  Brown,  who  had 
been  a  sailor  on  one  of  the  Union  gunboats.  He  did 
not  look  like  a  person  who  had  more  money  than  he 
wanted,  but  he  said  he  had,  and  that  his  object  in 
coming  here  was  to  rent  a  plantation  and  go  to  rais- 
ing cotton.  As  almost  everybody  was  ready  to  sell 
or  rent,  several  plantations  were  offered  him,  but  the 
only  one  he  would  look  at  was  Colonel  Cisco's — an 
old  worn-out  place  that  no  one  else  would  have  as  a 
gift.  The  widow — the  colonel  was  killed  in  the  army, 
you  know — was  glad  to  get  the  hundred  dollars  Mr. 
Brown  offered  her  to  bind  the  bargain,  and  let  him 
have  the  place  at  once.  He  said  he  could  do  nothing 


THE   BURIED    TREASURE.  31 

until  his  partner  came  from  Memphis  with  the  mules, 
provisions  and  other  things  needed  to  carry  on  plan- 
tations ;  but  he  took  possession  of  the  house,  and 
lived  there  two  months  all  by  himself.  He  was  never 
seen  during  the  daytime.  He  visited  none  of  the 
neighbors,  and  didn't  seem  to  want  to  have  anybody 
call  on  him ;  but  people  went  all  the  same,  and  one 
day  somebody  found  out  that  the  flower-beds  in  the 
back  yard,  on  which  Mrs.  Cisco  had  spent  so  much 
time,  had  all  been  dug  up,  and  that  there  was  a  hole 
there  that  one  could  bury  a  house  in.  The  man 
didn't  like  it  at  all  because  it  had  been  found  out, 
and  said  he  was  digging  a  cellar.  It  was  discovered 
afterward,  however,  that  all  this  work  had  been  done 
in  the  night,  and  that  Mr.  Brown  never  thought  of 
putting  a  cellar  there." 

"What  did  he  intend  to  put  there  then?"  asked 
David,  when  his  mother  paused. 

"  Nothing.  He  hoped  to  take  something  out ;  but 
he  was  taken  sick,  and  that  was  the  end  of  his  scheme. 
He  had  such  a  hard  time  getting  well,  that  when  he 
was  able  to  be  about  again,  he  made  up  his  mind 
that  he  had  seen  enough  of  the  South,  and  that  he 
would  go  home  at  once  and  stay  there.  He  wanted 
to  do  something  for  the  people  who  had  been  so  kind 


32  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

to  him  during  his  sickness,  so  he  took  the  man  who 
had  done  the  most  for  him  into  his  secret,  and  told 
him  what  had  brought  him  there.  In  the  first  place 
he  had  no  partner,  no  money — only  just  enough  to 
pay  his  railroad  and  steamboat  fare  to  the  place 
where  he  wanted  to  go — and  no  intention  of  cultiva- 
ting the  plantation.  There  was  money  buried  some- 
where near  the  house — he  wanted  it,  and  this  was 
the  way  he  found  out  about  it : 

"  Attached  to  the  same  gunboat  to  which  Mr. 
Brown  belonged  was  a  negro,  who  had  once  been 
Colonel  Cisco's  house  servant.  •  During  the  war  the 
colonel's  family  hid  all  their  valuables  in  the  ground, 
just  as  all  our  people  did  who  had  anything  to  hide, 
and  this  servant  helped  them  bury  money  and  silver, 
to  the  amount  of  thirty  thousand  dollars  and  over. 
After  he  ran  away  and  got  on  the  gunboat,  he  told 
about  it,  and  boasted  that  when  the  war  closed  he 
would  soon  make  a  rich  man  of  himself ;  but  he  was 
taken  sick,  and  this  Mr.  Brown,  who  was  the  doctor's 
steward,  took  care  of  him.  Before  he  died  he  told 
the  steward  about  the  buried  money,  and  described 
the  place  where  it  was  hidden  so  accurately  that  Mr. 
Brown  could  have  found  it  in  the  darkest  of  nights. 
That  was  what  made  him  hire  the  Cisco  plantation." 


THE   BURIED   TREASURE.  33 

"  Well,  did  he  get  the  money  ?"  asked  David,  who 
was  deeply  interested. 

"  People  think  not.  If  he  had  found  it,  he  would 
not  have  been  likely  to  say  anything  about  it ;  and 
besides  he  would  have  have  had  more  than  enough 
to  take  him  home." 

"  Didn't  Mrs.  Cisco  ever  say  anything  about  it  ?" 

"  Yes,  and  laughed  at  the  man  for  his  pains.     Her 

husband  had  money  once,  she  said,  and  buried  some 

of  it  a  dozen  different  times ;  but  it  was  dug  up  again 

as  soon  as  the  danger  of  losing  it  had  passed,  and 

what  they  didn't  use  was  stolen  from  them  by  the 

guerillas.     She's  now  almost  as  poor  as  ourselves, 

Mrs.  Cisco  is.     Her  house  was  not  burned,  and  in 

that  respect  only  is  she  better  off  than  we  are." 

"  We  were  rich  once,  were  we  not,  mother  ?" 

"  No,  we  were  not   rich,  but  we   had   enough. 

Your  father  owned  a  mile  square  of  land  that  was  all 

paid  for — he's  got  that  yet,  but  it  don't  seem  to  do 

him  any  good,  for  the  clearings  have  all  grown  up  to 

briers — and  we  had  a  good  house  and  plenty  to  eat 

and  wear.     He  was  a  hard-working,  saving  man  then, 

and  so  different  from  what  he  is  now,  that  I  sometimes 

think  that  somebody  else  has  come  to  me  from  the 

southern  army,  and  is  passing  himself  off  for  Godfrey. 

3 


34  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

We  were  happy  in  those  days,"  said  Mrs.  Evans,  gaz- 
ing earnestly  into  the  little  pile  of  coals  on  the  hearth, 
as  if  the  scenes  she  so  well  remembered  were  clearly 
pictured  there.  "  I  can  remember  when  our  cotton 
gin  was  kept  running  night  and  day ;  and  I  have 
seen  eight  four-horse  teams  going  up  the  road  toward 
the  landing  loaded  with  your  father's  cotton.  You 
can't  remember  anything  about  it,  for  you  were  too 
young  at  the  time." 

"  No,"  said  David,  "  but  I  can  remember  when  we 
lived  in  that  brush  shantee  that  had  a  fire  burning  in 
front  of  it  night  and  day ;  and  I  can  remember  of 
seeing  you  cry,  and  father  walking  up  and  down  and 
swinging  his  arms  as  if  he  were  crazy." 

"  That  was  just  after  we  were  burned  out.  You 
were  four  years  old  then.  Until  that  time  we  never 
thought  we  should  feel  much  of  the  war.  Although 
we  were  only  eight  miles  from  the  river,  we  used  to 
feel  perfectly  safe,  so  far  as  the  Federals  were  con- 
cerned. We  used  to  see  Redburn's  guerillas  about 
once  a  week,  but  they  belonged  to  our  own  side,  and 
at  first  we  did  not  stand  in  any  fear  of  them,  although 
we  soon  learned  to  dread  them  more  than  we  did  the 
Yankees.  We  never  were  afraid  that  they  would 
hurt  us,  but  they  stole  everything  they  could  lay 


THE   BURIED   TREASURE.  35 

their  hands  on,  and  finally  got  so  bad  that  General 
Irnboden  sent  them  word  that  if  they  didn't  do  better 
he  would  come  in  with  a  regiment  and  wipe  them  off 
the  face  of  the  earth.  We  never  thought  that  the 
Federals  would  get  in  here,  and  you  don't  know  how 
frightened  we  were  when  we  found  that  in  a  few  days 
their  gunboats  would  be  at  our  very  doors.  One  day 
in  February — that  was  in  '63 — the  Union  soldiers 
came  down  from  Helena  and  cut  the  levee.  The 
water  was  high  in  the  river,  and  it  ran  down  through 
the  pass  and  into  Diamond  lake  here,  and  overflowed 
the  bottoms  until  we  thought  it  would  drown  us  all. 
Then  the  gunboats  came — two  big  iron-clads,  a  lot 
of  tin-clads,  and  six  thousand  soldiers.  They  stopped 
here  long  enough  to  burn  every  dwelling-house  and 
cotton-gin  in  the  country  for  miles  around,  and  then 
went  on  down  the  pass.  Your  father  was  at  home 
then  on  a  furlough,  and  I  tell  you  they  came  pretty 
near  catching  him  !" 

"How  was  it?"  asked  David,  who  never  grew 
weary  of  listening  to  the  story,  although  he  had  heard 
it  probably  a  score  of  times. 


36  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 


CHAPTER  III. 

DAN'S  STRATEGY. 

TT  happened  one  day  while  we  were  at  dinner," 
replied  his  mother.  "  The  Union  soldiers  had 
been  at  work  on  the  levee  for  two  or  three  days,  and 
we  were  expecting  the  boats  through  every  hour. 
Godfrey  kept  his  saddle  on  his  horse  night  and  day, 
and  his  weapons  close  at  hand,  so  that  he  could  catch 
them  up  at  any  moment.  While  we  were  eating 
dinner  on  this  particular  day,  your  father,  who  sat 
opposite  the  window,  looked  up  all  of  a  sudden,  and 
before  I  could  ask  him  the  reason  for  his  pale  face, 
he  was  on  his  feet  and  out  at  the  door.  I  looked 
through  the  window,  and  right  here  in  our  lake,  and 
not  fifty  yards  from  the  door,  was  the  first  gunboat 
I  had  ever  seen.  The  Federals  had  goi  through  the 
levee  at  last,  and  one  of  their  boats,  being  of  that 
sort  which  don't  make  any  noise  when  they  run,  was 
right  upon  us  before  we  knew  it.  I  don't  know  her 
name  to  this  day,  but  she  had  the  figure  9  painted 


THE   BURIED   TREASURE.  .    37 

on  her  pilot  house,  and  I  could  see  the  cannons 
sticking  out  of  the  port-holes.  On  her  upper  deck 
were  a  lot  of  cotton  bales  placed  like  breastworks, 
and  behind  these  cotton  bales  were  fifty  or  sixty  men, 
all  with  muskets  in  their  hands,  and  watching  and 
waiting  for  a  chance  to  shoot  at  somebody.  Well, 
they  found  that  chance  as  soon  as  your  father  was 
fairly  out  at  the  door.  Two  jumps  brought  him  to 
his  horse  which  was  hitched  in  the  yard,  another  put 
him  in  the  saddle,  and  in  a  minute  more  he  was 
running  the  gauntlet." 

"  Wasn't  it  strange  that  he  escaped  being  hit  ?" 
"It  was  providential,"  replied  Mrs.  Evans.  "I 
have  heard  Godfrey  himself  say  that  he  could  have 
shot  a  squirrel's  eye  out  at  the  distance  he  was  from 
the  gunboat.  They  began  to  shoot  at  him  as  soon  as 
he  left  the  house,  and  I  sat  there  and  looked  through 
the  window  and  saw  them  do  it.  They  fired  as  fast 
as  they  could  get  a  sight  at  him,  and  the  guns  popped 
so  rapidly  that  they  reminded  me  of  a  burning  cane- 
brake.  When  they  stopped,  I  managed  to  get  up 
and  go  to  the  door.  There  was  a  big  cotton  field 
where  this  brier  patch  is  now,  and  it  was  half  a  mile 
wide.  On  the  other  side  of  it  was  a  rail  fence  that 
ran  between  the  field  and  the  woods,  and  there  I  saw 


38  THE   BURIED  TREASURE. 

Godfrey's  white  horse.  I  thought  at  first  that 
Godfrey  wasn't  with  him,  but  he  was.  He  was 
leaning  over  and  throwing  the  top  rails  off  the  fence. 
When  he  had  done  that,  he  straightened  up,  and 
seeing  me  standing  in  the  door,  he  waived  his  hat  to 
let  me  know  that  he  was  safe.  Then  he  jumped  his 
horse  over  the  fence  into  the  woods,  and  rode  away 
out  of  sight. 

"  At  that  minute  you  and  Daniel  began  to  cry, 
and  when  I  turned  about  to  see  what  the  matter  was, 
I  found  the  road  blue  with  Federals.  The  boat  had 
landed  in  front  of  the  house,  and  a  party  was  coming 
off  with  an  officer.  They  entered  without  ceremony, 
and  asked  me  who  it  was  that  rode  off  on  that  white 
horse,  and  if  I  knew  where  there  were  any  weapons. 
I  told  them  that  he  was  my  husband  and  your  father, 
and  that  he  had  taken  all  the  weapons  with  him. 
They  evidently  did  not  believe  the  last  statement,  for 
they  searched  every  room  in  the  house,  and  tumbled 
things  about  at  a  great  rate ;  but  they  didn't  break 
anything,  and  all  I  missed  after  they  were  gone  was 
your  father's  picture  which  he  had  just  had  taken  for 
me  in  Rochdale. 

"  Having  satisfied  themselves  that  there  were  no 
weapons  in  the  house,  the  sailors  went  back  to  the 


THE    BURIED    TREASURE.  39 

boat,  which  moved  off  into  the  lake,  and  went  down 
the  Pass  toward  Coldwater.  I  was  glad  when  they 
were  gone,  and  glad  too  to  be  let  off  so  easily,  for  I 
had  been  told  that  these  gunboat  men  were  awful 
fellows ;  but  they  never  troubled  us,  although  we  saw 
hundreds  of  them  afterward.  It  was  the  soldiers 
that  did  the  damage  and  our  experience  with  them 
began  the  very  next  day.  A  transport  loaded  with 
them  came  into  the  lake,  and  the  soldiers  camped  on 
our  plantation.  When  they  first  came,  we  had  cows, 
pigs,  chickens  and  milk  and  butter ;  but  in  less  than 
an  hour  we  had  none  of  these  things  left,  and  but 
little  furniture.  They  took  the  rocking-chairs  out 
to  sit  in  beside  their  camp-fires,  and  broke  the  tables, 
washstands  and  bureaus  up  into  firewood,  when  there 
were  plenty  of  fence-rails  to  be  had  for  the  taking. 
Then  one  of  them  said  there  wasn't  light  enough  for 
them  to  eat  by,  but  he'd  soon  have  more,  and  he  did ; 
for  he  pulled  a  straw  bed  into  the  middle  of  one  of 
the  rooms  and  touched  a  match  to  it. 

"  How  I  lived  through  that  night  I  don't  know. 
When  morning  came  the  house  was  gone  and  so  were 
the  soldiers  ;  and  I  was  turned  out  of  doors  with  two 
little  children  to  take  care  of.  Your  father  came 
back  as  soon  as  the  soldiers  were  all  out  of  sight,  and 


40  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

threw  up  a  little  brush  shantee,  that  we  lived  in,  un- 
til some  of  the  neighbors  could  get  together  and  build 
us  some  better  shelter.  They  put  up  this  cabin  for 
us,  and  after  we  had  time  to  collect  the  clothing  and 
furniture  the  soldiers  had  left  us,  we  found  that  we 
were  not  so  badly  off  after  all.  But  the  war  was 
hardly  more  than  half  through  then,  and  we  had  a 
good  deal  to  stand  before  peace  was  declared.  The 
guerillas  came  next,  and  you  see  just  what  they  left 
us.  I  thought  things  would  go  better  with  us  when 
your  father  came  home,  but  somehow  they  didn't. 
Times  have  been  growing  harder  instead  of  better. 
We're  getting  poorer  and  poorer  every  year,  and 
mercy  knows  what's  going  to  become  of  us  !" 

"  Well,  it's  one  comfort  to  know  that  we  can't  be 
much  worse  off  than  we  are  now,"  said  David.  "  It 
isn't  possible.  But  keep  up  a  good  heart,  mother. 
I've  got  some  news  for  you,  and  it's  better  than  that 
barrel  business  too,  for  it's  honest.  I  have  a  chance 
to  make  a  hundred  and  fifty  dollars." 

Mrs.  Evans  opened  her  eyes  and  looked  at  David 
without  speaking. 

"It's  a  fact,"  said  the  boy,  "  and  Don  Gordon  is 
the  one  who  put  me  in  the  way  to  do  it.  You  know 
his  father  takes  lots  of  papers,  and  among  them  is 


THE    BURIED   TREASURE.  41 

the  Rod  and  Grun,  which  tells  all  about  fishing  and 
hunting.  Well,  Don  was  reading  this  paper  the 
other  day,  and  he  found  in  it  an  advertisement  ask- 
ing for  live  quail — fifty  dozen  of  them.  He  showed  it 
to  me  last  night,  and  asked  me  why  couldn't  I  catch 
them  and  send  them  to  the  man." 

"  Who  wants  them,  and  what  is  he  going  to  do 
with  them  after  he  gets  them  ?"  asked  Mrs.  Evans. 

"0,  somebody  up  North  wants  'em.  Don  says 
they  had  a  hard  time  up  there  last  winter.  The 
weather  was  awful  cold,  the  snow  was  so  deep  that 
the  birds  couldn't  get  anything  to  eat,  and  the  quail 
all  died.  This  man  belongs  to  some  kind  of  a  club — 
a  'sportsman's  club,'  I  think  Don  called  it — and  he 
wants  these  quail  to  stock  the  country  again.  When 
he  gets  them,  he's  going  to  turn  them  loose  and  let 
them  go.  He  oifers  three  dollars  and  a  half  a  dozen. 
Don  says  it  will  cost  something  to  send  them  there, 
but  that  I  can  make  three  dollars  on  every  dozen 
just  as  easy  as  falling  off  a  log.  Say,  mother,  don't 
say  anything  to  father  or  Dan  about  it,  will  you?" 

Mrs.  Evans  promised  that  she  would  not. 

"You  see,"  added  David,  by  way  of  explanation, 
"  they  always  want  me  to  divide  when  I've  got  any 
money,  but  they  never  say  a  word  about  sharing 


42  THE    BURIED   TREASURE. 

with  me  when  they  have  any.  Besides,  what  they 
get  never  does  anybody  any  good,  not  even  them- 
selves ;  and,  mother,  if  I  get  this  hundred  and  fifty, 
I  want  it  to  do  you  some  good.  You  need  stockings, 
and  shoes,  and  a  new  dress." 

Mrs.  Evans  placed  her  hand  tenderly  on  the  boy's 
head,  and  told  herself  that  if  all  her  family  cared  as 
much  for  her  comfort  as  he  did,  she  would  fare  better. 

"  Do  you  think  you  can  catch  so  many  ?"  she 
asked.  "  Fifty  dozen  is  a  large  number." 

"  I  know  it,  but  just  see  what  I've  done  already. 
Last  winter,  when  we  were  so  poor  that  nobody  would 
trust  us  for  anything  to  eat,  and  we  couldn't  raise 
money  to  buy  powder  and  shot  to  shoot  game  with, 
I  kept  the  family  in  food,  didn't  I  ?" 

Mrs.  Evans  remembered  it  perfectly,  and  knew 
that  providing  the  family  with  something  to  eat  was 
not  all  this  fifteen  year  old  boy  had  done  during  that 
hard  winter.  By  the  aid  of  his  traps  he  had  kept  his 
mother  comfortably  clothed,  and  it  was  seldom  indeed 
that  he  could  not  produce  a  dollar  for  the  purchase 
of  such  luxuries  as  tea  and  coffee. 

"Well,"  continued  David,  "one  trap  did  it  all. 
It  caught  just  as  many  quail  as  we  could  eat  and  sell. 
One  day  I  took  twenty-seven  out  of  it.  This  winter 


THE   BURIED   TREASURE.  43 

I  shall  set  a  dozen  traps,  and  suppose  I  catch  five  a 
day  in  each  one  of  them  !  If  I  do,  it  will  take  me 
just  ten  days  to  fill  the  order." 

"  But  wouldn't  it  first  be  a  good  plan  to  write  to 
this  man  and  make  a  bargain  with  him  ?  Suppose 
somebody  traps  and  sends  him  the  fifty  dozen  before 
you  do  ?" 

"  0,  that's  all  provided  for.  Don  said  he  would 
write  to  the  man  last  night,  and  I  shall  not  begin 
until  I  hear  from  him.  One  hundred  and  fifty  dollars 
for  the  quail,  and  ten  dollars  for  breaking  the  pointer. 
One  hundred  and  sixty  dollars  in  all.  That  will  help 
us  through  the  winter,  and  if  father  and  Dan  would 
only  do  something  to  bring  in  as  much  more,  we'd 
get  along  well  enough.  But  I  must  be  off  to  the 
fields  now,  mother.  I'll  have  a  quail  for  your  supper, 
sure." 

As  David  said  this  he  took  a  rusty,  single  barrel 
shot  gun  down  from  some  hooks  over  the  door,  threw 

O  ' 

a  miserable  apology  for  a  game  bag  over  his  shoulder, 
kissed  his  mother  and  went  out  of  the  cabin.  He 
unfastened  the  pointer,  and  with  the  animal  trotting 
contentedly  at  his  heels,  made  his  way  through  the 
brier-patch  toward  the  nearest  open  field. 

"  There's  one  tiling  I  didn't  tell  mother,"  thought 


44  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

David,  "  and  that  is,  I  can  get  ten  dollars  just  as 
soon  as  I  have  a  mind  to  ask  for  it.  It  will  take 
perhaps  two  months  to  break  this  dog  so  that  he  will 
work  even  passably  well  in  the  field ;  but  I  needn't 
wait  that  long  for  the  money,  because  Don  told  me 
I  could  have  it  whenever  I  wanted  it.  You  see  he 
isn't  afraid  to  trust  me.  If  it  wasn't  for  the  looks 
of  the  thing  I'd  ask  him  for  it  this  very  afternoon. 
But  I'll  wait  a  day  or  two,  and  then  won't  I  astonish 
mother  with  the  bundle  of  things  I'll  bring  her  from 
the  store  ?  Dan  and  father  shan't  see  a  cent  of  it, 
and  neither  will  I  spend  any  of  it  on  myself.  Mother 
needs  it  more  than  anybody  else,  and  she  shall  have 
it  all.  Hallo  !"  exclaimed  David,  as  the  little  piping 
note  of  warning  the  quail  utters  when  suddenly  dis- 
turbed, fell  on  his  ear.  "  Come  here,  pup — I  declare, 
I  forgot  to  ask  your  master  what  your  name  is — 
come  here,  and  let's  see  how  much  or  how  little  you 
know !" 

David  was  standing  close  beside  a  fence  which 
ran  between  the  brier-patch  and  a  stubble-field.  He 
looked  over  into  the  field  when  he  heard  the  notes 
of  warning,  and  saw  a  flock  of  quails  running  through 
the  stubble,  and  directing  their  course  toward  a 
little  thicket  of  bushes  that  grew  on  the  banks  of 


THE   BURIED   TREASURE.  45 

a  bayou  near  by.  Had  Dan  Evans  been  there  with 
that  shot  gun  in  his  hands,  he  would  have  blazed 
away  at  once,  and  could  hardly  have  failed  to  kill 
or  wound  three  or  four  of  the  flock,  so  closely  were 
they  huddled  together.  That  was  the  kind  of  a 
hunter  Dan  was ;  but  David,  having  learned  what 
he  knew  of  bird  shooting  from  Don  Gordon,  who 
was  a  thoroughbred  young  sportsman,  would  have 
allowed  the  game  to  go  off  scot  free  before  he  would 
have  made  a  "  pot  shot "  at  them.  Shooting  on  the 
wing  requires  skill  on  the  part  of  the  hunter,  and 
gives  the  game  the  best  chance  for  its  life ;  and  this 
was  the  method  David  always  adopted.  He  lifted 
the  pup  over  the  fence,  got  over  himself,  and  with  a 
waive  of  his  hand  and  a  "  Hie  on,  old  boy  !"  walked 
toward  the  spot  where  the  flock  had  last  been  seen. 

The  dog  seemed  to  understand  him  perfectly,  and 
was  off  like  a  shot.  Of  course  he  would  not  quarter 
the  ground  in  obedience  to  a  motion  of  the  boy's 
hand — he  had  not  learned  that  yet — but  he  searched 
the  stubble  thoroughly,  and  when  he  struck  the  trail 
of  the  running  flock,  he  began  to  follow  it  up  like  an 
old  dog.  Suddenly  he  stopped  and  stood  as  motion- 
less as  if  he  had  been  turned  into  stone.  He  was 
pointing  a  quail  hidden  in  the  stubble  almost  under 


46  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

his  nose.  David  walked  up,  flushed  the  bird,  and 
when  it  was  in  the  air  stopped  it  as  neatly  with  his 
old  rusty  gun  as  any  champion  shot  could  have  done 
it.  Then  the  training  of  the  dog  began.  He  did 
not  drop  to  shot  nor  did  he  come  to  heel  when  ordered 
to  do  so ;  and  these  things,  together  with  many  others, 
must  be  taught  him  before  he  could  be  called  an 
educated  bird  dog.  With  perfect  confidence  in 
David's  ability  to  break  him  to  his  owner's  entire 
satisfaction,  we  will  leave  him  to  the  enjoyment  of 
his  afternoon's  sport,  and  go  back  to  Godfrey  and 
Dan,  whom  we  left  walking  down  the  road  toward  the 
steamboat  landing. 

"  I  say,  Dan,"  exclaimed  Godfrey,  as  soon  as  they 
were  out  of  hearing  of  David  and  his  mother,  "  ye 
wouldn't  mind  goin'  over  to  the  gen'ral's  an'  axin' 
some  of  his  niggers  fur  the  loan  of  a  shovel  fur  a  few 
days,  would  ye  ?  We  hain't  got  nothin'  to  dig  up 
that  thar  bar'l  with.  Ye  needn't  mind  tellin'  what 
we  want  it  fur,  ye  know.  If  anybody  axes  ye,  ye 
might  say  yer  mother's  poorly  from  the  fever'n  ager, 
an'  ye  want  to  dig  up  some  yarbs  to  make  her  some 
tea." 

"  All  right,"  said  Dan.     "  I'll  go." 

"I  wish  I  had  a  dollar,"  continued  his  father. 


THE    BURIED   TREASURE.  47 

"  Thar's  goin'  to  be  a  shootin'  match  fur  beef  down 
to  the  landin'  this  arternoon,  an'  if  I  could  go  in,  I'd 
be  a'most  sartin  to  win  one  of  the  hind-quarters. 
Thar  hain't  many  can  beat  me  shootin',  thar  hain't." 

"  I  reckon  mebbe  I  mought  find  a  dollar  fur  ye, 
if  ye'll  promise  honor  bright  to  pay  it  back  to  me," 
said  Dan. 

"  Ye'll  find  a  dollar  fur  me?"  exclaimed  his  father, 
opening  his  eyes  in  amazement.  "  Whar  ?" 

"  Wai,  now,  it  don't  make  no  odds  to  ye  whar  I 
git  it,  so  long  as  I  git' it,  does  it  ?"  asked  Dan. 

"  Nary  time,"  replied  his  father,  suddenly  stop- 
ping in  the  road  and  extending  his  hand  to  his  son. 
"  Ye  allers  was  a  good  boy,  Dannie,  an'  fur  down- 
right 'cuteness  an'  smartness  I'll  match  ye  agin  them 
book-larnt  fellers  up  to  the  gen'ral's  any  time.  In 
course  it  don't  make  no  sort  of  odds  to  me  whar  ye 
git  the  dollar,  nor  how  ye  git  it  nuther,  so  long  as 
ye  do  git  it.  Ye  ain't  a  foolin'  me  now  ?"  added  God- 
frey, looking  suspiciously  at  his  son.  It  was  not 
often  that  Dan  had  any  money  of  his  own,  and  his 
offer  to  lend  so  large  an  amount  as  a  dollar,  aston- 
ished and  perplexed  his  father,  who  found  it  hard 
work  to  persuade  himself  that  his  ears  had  not  de- 
ceived him. 


48  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

"  No,  I  hain't  a  foolin'  ye,"  returned  Dan.  "  Ye 
go  on  down  to  the  landin'  now,  an'  when  I  come  thar 
I'll  have  the  dollar  in  my  pocket,  an'  the  shovel  hid 
away  somewhar  so't  I  can  easy  find  it  again." 

"  Yer  a  good  boy,  Dannie,  an'  I'm  monstrous  proud 
of  yer,"  said  Godfrey,  once  more  giving  his  son's 
hand  a  hearty  gripe  and  shake.  "  An',  Dannie,  if 
the  time  ever  comes  when " 

Godfrey  suddenly  paused,  while  an  expression  of 
great  astonishment  and  even  of  pain  settled  on  his 
face. 

"  Dannie,"  said  he,  in  a  tone  of  voice  very  unlike 
that  he  had  just  used  in  addressing  his  son,  "ye 
hain't  been  an'  found  that  bar'l  with  the  eighty 
thousand  in  it,  has  yer  ?" 

"  No,  I  hain't,"  replied  Dan. 

"  Kase  if  ye  have,  and  ye  don't  go  havers  with 
yer  poor  ole  pop,  what's  fit  the  Yanks  an'  worked  so 
hard  to  support  ye  like  a  gentleman's  son  had  oughter 
be  supported,  ye'll  be  the  meanest  boy  that  ever  was 
wrapped  up  in  ragged  clothes,  an'  I'll  take  the  cow- 
hide to  ye,  big  as  ye  be  !" 

"  Wai,  ye  needn't  go  to  ravin'  that  thar  way, 
kase  I  hain't  found  the  bar'l,"  said  Dan ;  "  if  I  had, 


THE    BURIED   TREASURE.  49 

I  should  have  brung  it  to  ye  the  fust  thing.  I  didn't 
know  it  was  thar  till  ye  told  me." 

"  I  am  powerful  glad  to  hear  it,  Dannie,"  said 
Godfrey,  greatly  relieved ;  "  ye'd  oughter  brung  it 
to  me  if  ye'd  found  it,  kase  I'm  yer  pop.  I'm  the 
oldest  an'  know  what's  best  fur  us  all,  an'  it's  the 
properest  thing  that  I  should  have  the  dealin'  out 
of  the  money  when  we  gets  it.  But  ye'll  find  I 
won't  be  no  ways  stingy.  I'll  dress  ye  up  like  a 
gentleman,  an'  ye  shall  have  a  circus  hoss  too,  if  ye 
want  one." 

"  Now,  pop,  don't  forget  that,  will  yer  ?"  said 
Dan,  a  broad  grin  overspreading  his  face,  when  he 
thought  how  delighted  he  should  feel  if  he  could  only 
ride  about  the  country  as  neatly  dressed  and  as  well 
mounted  as  Don  and  Bert  Gordon,  whom  he  greatly 
envied.  "An'  I  wants  one  of  them  guns  what 
breaks  in  two  in  the  middle,  an'  you  shove  the  pow- 
der an'  shot  in  behind,  'stead  of  drivin'  them  down 
with  a  ramrod.  An'  I  want  one  of  them  fishpoles 
that  a  feller  can  take  all  to  pieces  an'  carry  under 
his  arm,  an'  sum  of  them  shiny  boots  that  ye  can 
allers  see  yer  face  in  no  matter  whether  ye  black  'em 
or  not — sich  as  Don  wears  on  Sundays." 

"  Ye  shall  have  'em  all,  my  son,"  said  Godfrey, 
4 


50  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

encouragingly,  "an*  as  many  more  things  us  ye 
want.  Now  here  we  are  at  the  gen'ral's  lane.  I'll 
go  on,  an'  when  I  see  ye  agin  I  shall  look  fur  that 
dollar  sartin.  I'll  be  an  awful  tuk  back,  deceived 
an'  upsot  man  if  I  don't  have  a  hand  in  that  shootin' 
match,"  added  Godfrey,  hoping  by  the  use  of  adjec- 
tives to  convey  to  Dan's  mind  some  idea  of  the  in- 
tense and  bitter  disappointment  he  should  feel  if  the 
expected  dollar  was  not  forthcoming. 

Dan  repeated  the  promise  which  he  had  made  so 
often  that  he  was  tired  of  it,  and  the  two  separated, 
Godfrey  keeping  on  towards  the  landing,  while  Dan 
turned  up  the  lane  that  led  toward  General  Gordon's 
house.  The  boy  made  his  way  at  once  to  the  barn, 
and  there  found  a  negro  hostler,  who,  after  listening 
to  his  request,  brought  out  a  shovel,  which  he  handed 
to  Dan  with  many  injunctions  to  be  careful  of  it, 
and  to  return  it  the  minute  he  was  done  using  it. 
Dan  readily  promised,  and,  wondering  what  the 
hostler  would  think  if  he  knew  that  the  implement 
was  to  be  used  to  unearth  some  of  the  general's  bur- 
ied wealth,  leaned  the  shovel  up  in  one  corner 
where  he  could  find  it  again  when  he  wanted  it. 
Then  placing  his  rifle  beside  it,  he  bent  his  steps 
toward  the  house,  and  passing  around  one  of  the 


THE   BURIED   TREASURE.  51 

wings,  in  which  he  knew  the  boys'  room  was  located, 
discovered  Bert  Gordon  sitting  by  an  open  window 
reading  a  book. 

"  Hello,  Dan,"  said  the  latter,  "are  you  looking 
for  any  one?" 

"  I  come  over  to  see  Mr.  Don,"  said  Dan,  touch- 
ing his  hat  respectfully  and  being  very  careful  to  put 
in  the  mister.  Dan -was  always  very  polite  when  he 
had  an  object  in  view. 

"  He's  gone  off  somewhere — down  to  the  land- 
ing, I  think,"  said  Bert ;  "  can  I  do  anything  for 
you  ?" 

"  I  reckon,"  replied  Dan,  "  Mr.  Bert,  if  ye  please, 
sar,  Dave  axed  me  would  I  come  up  here  an'  ax 
Mr.  Don  would  he  give  him  five  of  the  ten  dollars 
he  promised  him  fur  breakin'  that  pinter  pup,  now." 

"  Um !"  said  Bert,  somewhat  surprised  at  the 
request.  "Why  didn't  David  come  himself?" 

"  Wai,  ye  see,  he  hated  fur  to  pester  ye.  Kase 
you'ns  has  allers  been  so  good  to  us,  an'  we're  so 
dog-gone  poor  that  we  hain't  got  no  money  to  buy 
a  new  dress  fur  mother." 

"  Oh  !"  said  Bert,  throwing  down  his  book  and 
jumping  to  his  feet.  "  I  haven't  so  much  money  of 
my  own,  but  perhaps  I  can  borrow  it  of  mother%" 


52  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

He  disappeared  as  he  ceased  speaking,  while  Dan 
stood  chuckling  over  his  good  fortune,  and  hardly 
able  to  restrain  himself,  so  delighted  was  he  at  the 
success  of  his  stratagem. 

"In  course  he'll  get  it  of  his  mother,'-  said  Dan, 
"  he'd  get  her  head  if  he  axed  fur  it.  Didn't  I  tell 
the  ole  man  that  I'd  give  him  that  dollar  ?  I  reckon 
we  can  both  go  to  that  shootin'  match  now.  Sarvent, 
Mr.  Bert ;  much  obliged  to  ye,  sar,"  he  added  aloud, 
as  the  boy  came  down  the  steps  at  that  moment  and 
handed  him  a  crisp,  new  five-dollar  bill ;  "  if  we  an' 
Dave  can  ever  do  ye  a  good  turn,  I  hope  ye' 11  call 
on  us." 

Bert  said  he  would,  and  went  back  to  his  chair 
and  his  book,  while  Dan  retraced  his  steps  to  the 
stable,  picked  up  the  shovel  and  his  rifle,  and  went 
out  into  the  lane.  The  shovel  he  hid  in  a  fence  cor- 
ner, taking  care  to  mark  the  spot  so  that  he  could 
find  it  again  in  the  dark,  if  necessity  should  require 
it,  and  then  shouldered  his  rifle  and  turned  toward 
the  landing.  The  money  he  carried  in  his  hand,  and 
feasted  his  eyes  on  it  as  he  walked  along.  He  could 
not  admire  it  enough.  He  had  owned  but  few  bills 
so  large  as  this  in  his  lifetime,  and  he  thought  them 
the  most  beautiful  things  he  had  ever  seen. 


THE   BURIED   TREASURE.  53 

"I  must  make  it  go  as  fur  as  I  can,"  said  he,  to 
himself,  "  an'  I  must  have  the  other  one,  too.  How 
am  I  goin1  to  get  it,  I  wonder  ?  Mother  can't  want 
another  new  dress  right  away,  in  course  not;  but 
she  can  be  tuk  awful  sick  with  the  ager,  an'  want 
some  money  to  buy  some  store  tea,  an'  we  hain't  got 
none  to  give  her.  Won't  Dave  jaw  though  when  he 
finds  it  out  ?  "Who  keers  !  He  spends  every  cent  he 
gits  fur  mother,  an'  I  reckon  me  an'  pop  has  a  right 
to  some  of  it.  Pop  '11  be  awful  oneasy  to  find  out 
whar  I  got  it,  but  if  I  tell  him  he  '11  go  back  an'  get 
the  other  hisself ;  so  I  won't  tell  him.  I  must  get 
it  broke  too  at  the  store  afore  I  see  him ;  kase  if  he 
knows  I've  got  so  much,  mebbe  he'll  want  it  all. 
5 Tain' t  best  to  trust  pop  too  fur." 

Perhaps  the  reader  will  now  see  why  Dan  was  so 
anxious  that  his  father  should  not  prevent  David 
from  promising  to  break  Don  Gordon's  pointer.  He 
wanted  'those  ten  dollars  very  badly,  had  made  up 
his  mind  to  have  them ;  and  now  that  he  had  half 
the  amount  in  his  pocket,  he  was  supremely  happy. 
He  had  robbed  his  brother,  and  abused  Bert's  confi- 
dence, but  those  were  matters  that  did  not  trouble 
him  in  the  least.  He  had  the  money,  and  that  was 
all  he  cared  for. 


64  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

THE   SHOOTING   MATCH. 

ri^HE  steamboat  landing  toward  which  Godfrey 
Evans  bent  his  way,  was  looked  upon  as  a  very 
important  place  by  the  settlers  in  that  part  of  the 
state.  The  little  collection  of  houses  that  had  sprung 
up  there  contained  a  post-office,  a  few  dwellings,  and 
the  only  grocery  and  drug  store  to  be  found  within 
a  circle  of  twenty  miles.  The  mail  was  brought  there 
twice  each  week  by  a  mounted  carrier,  who  made 
regular  trips  between  the  landing  and  the  county 
seat,  which  lay  fifteen  miles  from  the  river.  No  par- 
ticular packet  stopped  there,  but  there  was  consider- 
able business  done  by  the  neighboring  planters  with 
the  city  of  Memphis,  in  the  way  of  plantation  supplies 
and  farming  implements,  and  some  steamboat  called 
at  the  landing  every  week.  Its  arrival  was  regarded 
as  an  event  of  great  consequence.  Whenever  five 
long  whistles  announced  that  a  steamer  was  approach- 
ing, all  the  negroes  and  unemployed  whites  within 
hearing  of  the  sound  would  hasten  to  the  landing  to 


THE    BURIED    TREASURE.  55 

see  her  come  in,  and  watch  the  unloading  of  the  car' 
go  she  brought.  The  sight  was  not  a  new  or  novel 
one  to  them,  but  the  life  they  led  there  was  so 
monotonous  that  any  event,  however  trivial,  that 
furnished  them  fresh  topics  for  an  hour's  conversation, 
was  gladly  welcomed.  Godfrey  Evans  never  missed 
a  boat  rain  or  shine.  He  was  there  nearly  every  day, 
and  if  he  chanced  to  be  absent  some  of  the  hangers- 
on  always  noticed  it,  and  wondered  what  could  be 
the  matter. 

Toward  the  landing  Godfrey  hastened  after  parting 
from  his  son,  and  entering  the  street  which  ran  from 
the  river  back  into  the  country,  found  himself  in  front 
of  the  grocery,  and  in  the  midst  of  a  group  of  men 
who  were  congregated  there.  They  all  carried  rifles 
in  their  hands,  and  the  sharp,  whip-like  reports  which 
now  and  then  came  from  a  little  grove  situated  a  few 
rods  up  the  river  bank,  told  that  the  shooting  match 
was  in  progress. 

Godfrey  entered  the  store  and  drawing  up  before 
the  counter,  rapped  on  it  with  his  knuckles  to  attract 
the  attention  of  the  proprietor,  who  was  busy  in  the 
little  room  that  opened  off  the  rear.  The  rap  quickly 
brought  him  out,  but  when  he  saw  who  his  customer 
was,  he  stopped  and  asked : — 


56  THE    BURIED   TREASURE. 

"What's  the  matter,  Godfrey  ?" 

"  I'll  take  a  plug  of  that  amazin'  fine  ole  Virginy 
of  your'n,  if  ye  please,  sir,"  said  Godfrey,  leaning  his 
rifle  against  the  counter  and  thrusting  his  hand  into 
his  pocket. 

The  grocery  keeper  whistled  softly  to  himself,  but 
made  no  move  to  produce  the  required  article.  He 
wanted  first  to  see  what  would  be  the  result  of  his 
customer's  investigations.  Godfrey  continued  to 
search  his  pockets — every  one  of  them  had  a  hole  in 
it  that  he  could  have  run  his  hand  through — and  his 
movements  grew  quicker,  as  his  impatience  to  find 
something  in  them  increased,  and  then  slower,  as  the 
fact  appeared  to  dawn  upon  him  that  there  was 
nothing  there. 

"You  don't  seem  to  pull  out  anything,  Godfrey," 
said  the  merchant. 

"No,  it's  a  fact,  I  don't  seem  to,"  replied  the  cus- 
tomer. "  I've  left  my  pocket-book  to  hum,  arter  all. 
Say,  Silas,"  he  added,  sinking  his  voice  almost  to  a 
whisper,  and  glancing  hastily  toward  the  crowd  of 
men  at  the  door,  "ye  wouldn't  mind  trustin'  me  till 
next  week,  I  reckon,  would  ye  ?" 

"  Yes,  I  would,"  was  the  blunt  reply. 

"  Only  till  next  week,  I  say,"  repeated  Godfrey. 


THE    BURIED    TREASURE.  57 

"  I'll  have  more  money  then  nor  a  mule  can  haul 
away,  an'  I'll  pay  ye  every  red  cent  I  owe  ye  !" 

"Well,  then  I'll  sell  you  everything  you  want," 
said  the  merchant. 

"  An'  won't  ye  let  me  have  nothin'  now  ?" 

"  No,  I  can't.  And,  Godfrey,  you'd  be  better  off 
if  you  would  save  your  half  dollars  and  buy  yourself 
a  pair  of  shoes.  It  will  not  be  long,  now,  before  the 
cold  winter  rains  will  set  in,  and  there'll  be  frost  and 
snow " 

"  I  know,"  interrupted  Godfrey.  "  But  I  can  kill 
a  heap  of  deer  atween  this  time  and  that,  an'  deer 
meat  is  goin'  to  be  wuth  something  han'some  this 
year,  kase  game  is  so  skase.  Come  on  now, 
Silas !" 

But  Silas  went  off  to  the  other  side  of  the  store  to 
attend  to  the  wants  of  another  customer,  and  Godfrey, 
finding  that  no  further  notice  was  taken  of  his 
presence,  picked  up  his  rifle,  went  out  of  the  door, 
and  turned  his  face  up  the  road  again  in  the  direction 
from  which  Dan  was  expected  to  appear. 

.  "I'll  never  do  no  more  tradin'  with  Silas,"  said 
Godfrey  to  himself.  "  I'll  send  to  Memphis  fur  my 
things,  the  way  the  rest  of  the  gentlemen  do ;  an'  I 
shall  be  as  fine  a  gentleman  as  the  best  of  'em  when 


58  THE    BURIED    TREASURE. 

I  find  that  bar'l,  won't  I  ?     Halloa,  Dannie  !  whar's 
that  dollar?  I  reckon  ye  've  got  it." 

Dan  was  coming  along  the  road  with  his  head  down, 
and  his  eyes  fastened  on  the  five-dollar  bill,  which 
he  still  held  in  his  hand.  Had  his  father  remained 
silent,  he  could  have  walked  up  close  to  him  before 
Dan  would  have  known  that  there  was  any  one  near, 
so  fully  was  his  attention  taken  up  with  the  greenback. 
Surprised  and  startled  by  the  abrupt  address,  he 
hastily  crumpled  up  the  money  and  thrust  it  into  his 
pocket. 

"  What's  that  yer  shovin'  out  of  sight  so  quick 
thar?"  demanded  Godfrey. 

"  I  hainta  shovin'  nothin'  out  of  sight,"  answered 
Dan.  "  Can't  a  feller  put  his  gold  toothpick  into  his 
pocket  if  he  wants  to  ?" 

"  Whar's  the  dollar  ?"  inquired  his  father. 

"  I  hain't  got  to  the  landin'  yet,  have  I  ?"  asked 
Dan,  in  reply.  "  I  told  ye  that  when  I  got  to  the 
landin  I'd  have  it  fur  ye." 

His  father  looked  at  him  suspiciously.  "  Whar 
are  ye  goin'  to  git  it  down  here,  an'  who's  goin'  to 
give  it  to  ye  ?"  he  asked. 

"  Didn't  ye  tell  me  that  it  don't  make  no  sort  of 
odds  to  ye  whar  I  git  it,  or  who  gives  it  to  me,  so 


THE   BURIED   TREASURE.  59 

long  as  I  git  it?"  demanded  Dan,  impatiently. 
"  Now,  ye  go  down  to  the  grove  an'  stay  thar,  an' 
when  I  come  to  ye,  I'll  give  ye  the  dollar." 

Godfrey  was  satisfied  with  this  assurance — at  least 
he  appeared  to  be.  He  walked  along  with  Dan  until 
they  came  to  the  turn  in  the  road,  and  then  he  went 
toward  the  grove  where  the  shooting  was  going  on, 
while  Dan  turned  toward  the  post-office.  The  latter 
watched  his  father  until  he  saw  him  join  one  of  the 
little  groups  of  men  who  were  congregated  under 
the  trees,  and  then  faced  about  and  entered  the 
store. 

There  were  several  customers  in  there,  and  Dan 
was  obliged  to  await  his  turn.  It  came  at  last,  and 
then  he  handed  out  his  five-dollar  bill,  with  the  re- 
quest that  it  might  be  changed  into  notes  of  smaller 
denomination.  The  grocer  rapidly  complied,  and  as 
Dan  gathered  up  his  money  and  turned  to  go  out,  he 
was  astonished  to  find  his  father  standing  at  his  elbow. 
Being  barefooted,  Godfrey  had  entered  the  store  and 
placed  himself  close  by  his  son's  side  without  being 
observed.  His  face  wore  a  look  of  amazement  that 
was  curious  to  behold.  He  did  not  know  how  much 
money  Dan  had  in  his  possession,  but  he  judged  by 
the  size  of  the  roll  he  held  in  his  hands,  that  it  must 


60  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

be  a  large  amount.  He  marvelled  greatly  as  he  fol- 
lowed the  boy  out  of  the  store. 

"Thar's  yer  dollar,  pop,"  said  Dan,  who,  finding 
that  his  secret  was  discovered,  thought  it  best  to  put 
a  bold  face  on  the  matter.  "  I  told  ye  I'd  be  sartin 
to  get  it  fur  ye.  Ye  mustn't  forget  to  pay  it  back, 
or  to  get  me  them  nice  things  ye  promised  when  we 
find  that  bar'l." 

"No,  I  won't,"  said  Godfrey,  smiling  joyously  as 
he  felt  the  bill  between  his  fingers.  "  I'm  goin'  to 
be  a  good  pop  to  ye,  Dannie,  an'  now  I'll  tell  ye  what 
I've  been  a  thinkin'  of  doin'  fur  ye :  yer  gettin'  to 
be  an  amazin'  fine,  strappin'  big  boy,  Dannie.  Yer 
a' most  as  high  up  in  the  world  as  yer  pop,  an'  purty 
soon  ye'll  be  gettin'  to  be  a  young  man.  Then  ye'll 
want  store  clothes  an'  all  sorts  of  nice  things,  and 
mebbe  me  an'  yer  poor  ole  mam'll  lose  yer,  kase 
ye'll  be  lookin'  around  fur  a  wife." 

Dan  grinned  and  thought  of  the  little  tow-headed 
girl  he  had  so  often  been  on  the  point  of  seeing  safe 
home  from  church.  The  reason  he  didn't  do  it  was 
because  when  the  critical  time  came,  he-  could  never 
muster  up  courage  enough  to  speak  to  her. 

"  Yes,  ye  will,"  continued  his  father ;  "  an'  then 
ye'll  find  that  thar  hain't  nothin'  in  the-  world  that 


THE   BURIED   TREASURE.  61 

takes  with  the  gals,  an'  the  men  folks  too,  like  good 
clothes  an'  shiny  boots  an'  hats.  But  it  takes  money 
to  get  them  things.  Now,  I  hain't  a  goin'  to  be  the 
mean  ole  hulks  to  ye  that  my  pop  was  to  me.  He 
left  me  with  empty  hands,  to  make  a  livin'  as  best  I 
could,  but  I'm  goin'  to  be  a  good  pop  to  ye,  an'  give 
ye  a  fine  start.  I'm  goin'  to  give  ye  half  that  bar'l 
when  I  find  it." 

"  How  much'll  that  be  ?"  asked  Dan. 

"  0,  it'll  be  a  heap,  I  tell  yer,"  replied  Godfrey, 
growing  animated  and  hoping  thus  to  work  upon 
Dan's  feelings  sufficiently  to  accomplish  the  object 
he  had  in  view  ;  "as  much  as — as — twenty  thousand 
anyhow,  an'  mebbe  sixty,"  added  Godfrey,  who  was 
not  very  quick  at  figures.  "  An'  then,  Dannie,  if 
yer  a  monstrous  good  boy,  an'  allers  do  jest  as  I  tell 
ye,  mebbe  I'll  buy  out  Gen'ral  Gordon  an'  give  ye 
his  place.  Then  ye  can  have  circus  hosses,  as  many 
as  ye  want,  an'  some  of  them  amazin'  fine  guns  what 
break  in  two  in  the  middle,  an'  a  sail-boat  on  the 
lake,  an'  all  the  other  nice  things  sich  as  Bert  and 
Don  has  got." 

Dan  grinned  again  and  fairly  trembled  with  excite- 
ment. The  prospect  of  owning  all  these  aids  to 
happiness  was  enough  to  excite  anybody. 


62  THE    BURIED   TREASURE. 

"  Now,  Dannie,  I  won't  forget  all  this  if  ye  will 
promise  to  be  a  good  boy  an'  do  jest  what  I  tell  yer," 
said  his  father.  "  Will  ye  ?" 

"  I  will,  pop,"  replied  the  boy,  shaking  hands  with 
his  sire,  to  show  that  he  was  in  earnest.  "  Ye  jest 
see  if  I  don't." 

"  I'm  powerful  glad  to  hear  ye  say  so,  Dannie," 
continued  Godfrey ;  and  now  he  came  to  the  point 
at  which  he  had  all  the  while  been  aiming,  but  he 
broached  it  with  no  little  hesitation,  and  anxiety  as 
to  the  result. 

"Now,  Dannie,"  said  he,  "don't  ye  think  that 
to  pay  me  fur  all  these  things  I'm  a  goin'  to  do  fur 
ye,  that  ye'd  oughter  give  me  the  rest  of  the  money 
ye've  got  in  yer  pocket  ?" 

"No,  I  don't,"  said  Dan,  promptly. 

"What  fur?" 

"  Kase  I  want  it  myself.  I'm  agoin'  into  the 
shootin'  match  too." 

"  An'  shoot  agin  yer  poor  old  pop,  what's  fit  the 
Yanks,  an*  worked  so  hard  fur  ye  ?  Dan,  I'm  ex- 
tonished  at  yer !  Now,  Dannie,  I  wouldn't  go  in,  if 
I  was  ye,  kase  ye  can't  win  nothin',  an'  'sides  ye 
want  to  save  yer  money,  don't  ye  ?  That's  the  way 
to  get  rich,  Dannie.  Let  yer  pop  do  the  shootin', 


THE    BURIED  TREASURE.  63 

an'  we'll  have  a  quarter  of  beef  to  carry  home  to- 
night, I  warrant  ye." 

But  Dan  would  make  no  promises,  and  neither 
could  his  father's  most  earnest  entreaties  induce  him 
to  surrender  even  the  smallest  portion  of  the  money 
he  had  in  his  pocket.  What  he  had  in  his  possession 
he  was  sure  of — the  barrel,  with  its  eighty  thousand 
dollars,  he  was  not  sure  of;  and  believing  that  a 
single  bird  in  the  hand  was  worth  a  whole  flock  in 
the  woods,  he  declared  it  to  be  his  unalterable  deter- 
mination to  hold  fast  to  every  cent  he  had.  Godfrey 
was  highly  exasperated,  but  he  took  good  care  not  to 
show  it.  Their  near  approach  to  the  grove  and  to 
the  men  assembled  there,  obliged  him  to  cease  his 
entreaties,  and  with  the  mental  resolve  that  Dan 
should  be  made  to  repent  his  refusal,  Godfrey  went 
to  hunt  up  the  man  who  had  charge  of  the  shooting. 
To  his  great  delight  he  learned  that  there  were  so 
many  contestants  that  the  entrance  fee  was  only 
seventy-five  cents.  This  left  him  a  quarter  of  a  dol- 
lar to  spend,  and  he  made  all  haste  to  do  it.  For- 
getting the  resolution  he  had  formed  a  short  time 
before,  to  spend  no  more  money  with  Silas  Jones,  he 
hurried  off  to  the  store,  and  returned  with  a  plug  of 
the  tobacco  for  which  the  merchant  had  refused  to 


64  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

credit  him.  When  he  came  back,  he  .saw  Dan 
stretched  out  on  the  ground  behind  a  small  log  squint- 
ing along  the  barrel  of  his  rifle,  which  was  pointed 
at  a  piece  of  white  paper  fastened  to  a  board,  and 
placed  against  a  tree  a  few  yards  away. 

"  The  ongrateful  scamp  !"  said  his  father,  to  him- 
self. "  He's  gone  an'  spent  six  bits  to  go  into  the 
shootin'  match  arter  all.  He  ain't  fit  to  have  money, 
he  throws  it  about  so  scandalous.  I'll  take  keer 
that  he  don't  throw  away  no  more." 

For  the  benefit  of  our  city  readers,  who  may  like 
to  know  something  of  the  sports  and  pastimes  of  those 
whose  means  of  recreation  are  not  so  abundant  as 
their  own,  we  will  tell  how  a  shooting  match  is  con- 
ducted in  the  South  and  West.  In  the  first  place, 
we  are  glad  to  say  that  it  is  very  different  from  turkey 
shooting  as  carried  on  in  the  Northern  States.  In 
the  latter  there  is  no  sport  whatever.  The  luckless 
turkey  is  tied  to  a  stump,  so  that  it  has  no  chance 
for  life,  and  the  marksmen  station  themselves  at  dis- 
tances varying  from  one  to  two  hundred  and  fifty 
yards,  and  shoot  at  it,  until  some  one  kills  or  wounds 
it.  It  is  a  cruel  practice,  and  no  boy  or  man  either 
who  has  the  least  spark  of  humanity  or  love  of  fair 
play  in  him,  will  engage  in  it. 


THE    BURIED    TREASURE.  65 

In  the  shooting  matches  of  which  we  speak,  the  con- 
testants do  not  shoot  at  the  game,  but  at  a  mark. 
Each  one  provides  himself  with  a  piece  of  board, 
which  is  held  over  a  fire  until  one  side  of  it  is 
thoroughly  blackened.  Upon  this  blackened  surface 
a  cross,  like  the  sign  -}-,  is  made  with  the  point  of 
a  knife.  The  place  where  these  two  lines  intersect 
is  called  the  centre  ;  and  as  it  is  no  larger  than  the 
point  of  a  pin,  you  can  easily  imagine  how  much 
skill  is  required  to  make  a  "  dead-centre"  shot.  On 
this  centre,  to  show  where  it  is,  is  placed  a  piece  of 
white  paper — it  may  be  half  an  inch  or  three  or  six 
inches  square,  as  the  shooter  prefers — which  is  held 
in  its  place  by  a  tack  or  wooden  pin.  The  contest- 
ants then  station  themselves  forty  or  sixty  yards 
away,  according  as  they  want  to  shoot  off-hand  or 
with  a  rest,  and  the  sport  begins.  The  one  who 
makes  the  best  shot  takes  the  first  choice  of  the  prizes, 
whatever  they  may  be ;  the  one  who  makes  the 
second  best,  takes  the  second  choice ;  and  so  on  until 
all  the  prizes  are  gone. 

These  prizes  may  be  turkeys,  chickens  or  pigs ; 
but  beef  is  shot  for  more  than  anything  else.  What- 
ever the  article  is,  it  is  furnished  by  some  one  of  the 
contestants  who  sets  a  price  upon  it,  and  collects  of 
5 


66  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

each  one  who  participates  in  the  shooting  an  equal  part 
of  the  amount.  Thus,  if  a  beef  worth  twenty  dollars 
is  shot  for  and  there  are  twenty  contestants,  each  one 
pays  the  owner  a  dollar.  In  this  case  there  are  six 
prizes — the  two  hind-quarters,  the  two  fore-quarters, 
the  hide  and  tallow,  and  the  lead  that  is  shot  into 
the  tree  against  which  the  boards  are  placed.  The 
last  prize  is  of  no  small  value  sometimes,  especially 
to  men  who  live  four  or  five  miles  from  a  store.  If 
there  are  twenty  contestants  and  each  one  shoots  a 
dozen  times,  the  chunk  of  lead  which  will  be  cut  out 
of  the  tree  by  the  one  who  wins  it,  will  furnish  bul- 
lets enough  to  last  him  a  year.  As  soon  as  the 
shooting  is  over  the  beef  is  killed,  and  each  one 
takes  whatever  he  may  have  been  skilful  enough 
to  win. 

This  was  the  kind  of  a  match  that  Dan  and  his 
father  attended ;  and  the  result  of  it  was  not  a  little 
surprising  to  the  latter.  If  it  had  not  been  for  Dan's 
good  shooting,  the  two  would  have  been  obliged  to 
return  home  empty-handed.  Godfrey's  great  skill 
with  the  rifle,  of  which  he  so  often  boasted,  was  not 
made  apparent  on  this  particular  day.  He  got  noth- 
ing, but  Dan  won  a  prize.  He  made  four  centres, 
but  three  of  them  had  to  be  placed  against  the  same 


THE   BURIED   TREASURE.  67 

number  of  centres  made  by  other  marksmen.  When 
that  had  been  done  the  boy  had  still  one  centre  left, 
and  that  entitled  him  to  the  first  choice.  Dan  was 
highly  elated,  and  his  father  was  correspondingly 
enraged. 

"  The  ungrateful  rascal,"  said  Godfrey  to  himself, 
"  to  come  here  an.'  shoot  agin'  his  poor  ole  pop  what's 
done  so  much  fur  him,  an'  make  me  take  a  back  seat ! 
I  eddicated  that  boy  myself.  I  larnt  him  how  to 
handle  a  rifle,  and  now  I  wish  I  hadn't  done  it,  kase 
this  is  the  kind  of  pay  I  get  fur  it.  I'll  take  mighty 
good  keer  that  he  don't  get  no  more  seventy-five  cents 
to  spend v  at  shootin'  matches.  It  beats  all  natur' 
whar  he  got  that  wad  of  money,  an'  if  I  had  another 
dollar  I'd  give  it  to  know  !" 

But  Godfrey  said  nothing.  He  knew  that  if  he 
spoke  as  he  felt,  it  would  put  Dan  on  his  guard,  and 
that  might  lead  to  the  derangement  of  certain  plans 
he  had  formed.  So  he  laughed  at  the  witty  things 
that  were  said  to  him  about  being  beaten  by  his  own 
son,  and  when  some  one  complimented  Dan  on  the 
skill  he  had  exhibited,  his  father  said  it  might  have 
been  expected,  for  the  boy  was  simply  a  chip  of  the 
old  block. 

"  I'm  monstrous  proud  of  ye,  Dannie,"   said  God' 


68  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

frey,  as  the  two  wended  their  way  toward  home  after 
the  shooting  was  over ;  "  monstrous  proud.  It  done 
me  good  to  see  them  ole  fellers  look  wild  when  ye 
made  them  centres  so  handy,  one  arter  t'other. 
I'm  a  trifle  sorry  that  ye  spent  yer  money  so  scan- 
dalous foolish,  but  it  can't  be  helped  now.  'Tain't 
the  way  to  get  rich,  Dannie,  that  ar  way  aint,  an'  I 
hope  ye  won't  do  it  no  more." 

This  was  the  way  Godfrey  talked;  but  had  he 
acted  out  his  feelings,  he  would  have  fallen  upon 
Dan  with  the  cowhide  the  moment  they  reached  the 
cabin. 

The  three  miles  that  lay  between  the  landing  and 
the  Evans  plantation  being  accomplished,  Godfrey, 
with  the  air  of  a  man  who  had  done  a  day's  work 
with  which  he  was  perfectly  satisfied,  seated  himself 
.on  a  bench  beside  the  door,  preparatory  to  indulging 
in  a  pipeful  of  the  store  tobacco  which  had  come  into 
his  possession  so  unexpectedly ;  while  Dan  proceeded 
to  the  corn-crib  behind  the  house,  and  harnessed  an 
old  and  very  infirm  mule  to  a  rickety  wagon,  intending 
to  return  to  the  landing  and  bring  home  the  quarter 
of  beef  that  had  fallen  to  his  lot.  He  went  about 
his  task  in  that  peculiar  and  indescribable  way  a  boy 
has  of  doing  things  when  he  has  something  in  view 


THE   BURIED   TREASURE.  69 

besides  the  work  in  hand.  His  movements  were 
stealthy,  and  he  cast  frequent  and  furtive  glances 
around  him,  as  if  he  were  afraid  of  being  caught  in 
some  act  that  would  bring  him  certain  and  speedy 
punishment. 

Once  or  twice  he  moved  quickly  to  the  cabin 
and  looked  around  the  corner,  to  make  sure  that 
his  father  was  still  seated  where  he  had  left  him. 
He  always  found  him  there.  He  never  seemed  to 
have  changed  his  position.  He  sat  with  his  legs 
stretched  out  before  him,  his  hands  thrust  deep  into 
his  pockets,  his  head  bowed,  his  eyes  closed  and  his 
beloved  pipe  tightly  clenched  between  his  teeth. 
He  was  asleep ;  and  Dan,  having  made  sure  of  this, 
quickly  returned  to  the  corn-crib  and  halted  under  a 
shed  which  was  built  on  one  side  of  it.  This  shed 
was  used  to  shelter  the  wagon,  the  few  farming  im- 
plements Godfrey  possessed,  and  also  the  harness, 
which,  when  not  in  use,  was  kept  hung  up  on  a 
wooden  pin  driven  into  one  of  the  logs  of  which  the 
corn-crib  was  built.  Dan  came  to  a  stop  under  this 
pin,  and  after  looking  all  around  again  to  make  sure 
that  there  was  no  one  watching  him,  he  seized  it 
with  both  hands,  and  after  working  it  backward  and 
forward  a  few  times,  finally  pulled  it  out. 


70  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

Looking  into  the  hole,  as  if  to  satisfy  himself  that 
something  he  had  previously  placed  there  was  safe, 
Dan  drew  a  roll  of  bills  out  of  his  pocket,  and,  after 
running  his  eye  over  them  to  make  sure  that  they 
were  all  there,  thrust  them  into  the  hole,  and  with 
one  quick  blow  with  his  hand  drove  the  pin  back  to 
its  place.  This  done,  he  jumped  into  the  wagon, 
picked  up  the  knotted  lines,  and  as  he  drove  around 
the  corner  of  the  cabin,  took  care  to  notice  his  father's 
position.  Godfrey  was  still  asleep — there  could  be 
no  doubt  about  that.  His  pipe  was  twisted  about  in 
his  mouth,  until  the  bowl  pointed  downward,  his  head 
was  thrown  over  on  one  side,  and  as  Dan  looked  at 
him,  he  told  himself  that  he  was  disposed  of  for  two 
long  hours,  at  least.  Yet  so  suspicious  was  he,  that 
he  did  not  neglect  to  turn  and  look  at  him  every 
now  and  then  as  long  as  he  remained  in  sight  of  the 
cabin. 

"  He's  thar  yet,  an'  I  reckon  I've  fixed  things  all 
right,"  thought  Dan,  with  a  chuckle  denoting  intense 
satisfaction.  "  He's  been  kinder  snoopin'  around 
ever  since  he  found  out  I  had  that  money,  an'  I  was 
afeared  that  mebbe  he'd  smell  out  somethin'.  He 
thinks  I  don't  know  it,  but  I've  seed  him  more'n 
once  sarchin'  my  pockets  arter  I  went  to  bed,  an' 


THE    BURIED   TREASURE.  71 

he  thought  I  was  asleep.  He  was  a  lookin'  fur  gun 
caps,  an'  things  he  couldn't  buy  hisself.  I  reckon 
he  hain't  made  much  outen  me  since  I  found  that 
hidin'  place  fur  my  money  an'  sich  plunder.  'Tain't 
safe  to  trust  pop  no  further  nor  a  feller  can  see 
him." 

With  these  sage  reflections,  Dan  drove  on  toward 
the  landing. 


72  THE    BURIED    TREASURE. 


CHAPTER  V. 

GODFREY    FINDS    SOMETHING. 

~V¥7"HEN  Dan  drove  around  the  corner  of  the 
cabin,  the  slumbering  Godfrey,  without  chang- 
ing his  position,  opened  one  of  his  eyes,  but  quickly 
closed  it  again  as  Dan  turned  about  in  his  wagon  to 
look  at  him.  Presently  he  opened  it  again,  and 
kept  it  open  until  Dan  once  more  turned  to  look  at 
him  ;  and  the  farther  the  wagon  left  the  house  behind, 
the  oftener  the  eye  was  opened,  and  the  longer  it  re- 
mained open.  When  the  wagon  and  its  driver  had 
disappeared  around  a  bend  in  the  road,  Godfrey 
opened  both  eyes,  straightened  up,  stretching  his  arms 
and  yawning  as  if  he  had  just  awakened  out  of  a 
sound  sleep,  turned  his  pipe  about  in  his  mouth,  and 
with  an  expression  of  great  satisfaction  on  his  face, 
arose  and  went  around  the  corner  of  the  house  toward 
the  corn-crib.  He  walked  straight  to  the  shed  that 
stood  beside  it,  and  placing  his  hand  on  the  same  pin 


THE    BURIED    TREASURE.  73 

that  Dan  had  removed  .tut  a  few  minutes  before, 
pulled  it  out  and  looked  into  the  opening. 

He  was  surprised  at  the  size  of  it.  By  the  aid  of 
a  gouge,  or  some  other  sharp  instrument,  the  inside 
of  the  hole  had  been  cut  away  until  a  cavity  had  been 
formed  that  would  hold  a  quart  or  more ;  and  in  this 
were  two  or  three  small  packages,  done  up  in  brown 
paper.  Godfrey  opened  his  knife  and  poked  them 
out  one  by  one.  The  first  contained  the  greenbacks 
of  which  he  was  in  search.  -  He  counted  them  over 
carefully,  and  was  greatly  disappointed  and  surprised 
to  find  that  the  whole  amount  was  only  three  dollars 
and  twenty-five  cents.  But  even  that  sum  was  more 
than  he  could  often  call  his  own,  and  his  fingers 
closed  tightly  about  it  as  if  he  feared  that  it  might 
somehow  slip  away  from  him  and  be  lost.  The  other 
packages  contained  powder,  lead  and  a  box  of  caps. 
These  were  all  useful  to  Godfrey,  who  put  them  into 
the  pocket  that  had  the  smallest  holes  in  it,  and  after 
replacing  the  pin  and  driving  it  into  the  hole  with  a 
blow  of  his  hand,  walked  away,  well  satisfied  with  the 
discovery  he  had  made. 

Dan  was  not  so  smart  as  he  thought  he  was.  His 
father  had  known  for  along  time  that  he  had  a  secret 
hiding  place  for  all  the  various  little  odds  and  ends 


74  THE    BURIED   TREASURE. 

that  came  into  his  hands,  and  when  Dan  went  to 
harness  the  mule,  the  suspicious  glances  he  cast  about 
and  his  stealthy  actions,  made  Godfrey  believe  that 
he  had  only  to  watch  him  to  find  out  where  that 
hiding  place  was.  There  was  a  convenient  opening 
in  the  rear  wall  of  the  cabin,  that  had  been  formed 
by  the  "  chinking"  falling  out,  and  through  this  hole 
Godfrey  watched  all  Dan's  movements.  As  long  as 
Dan  remained  at  the  corn-crib,  Godfrey  kept  his  eye 
at  the  opening ;  but  when  the  boy  came  toward  the 
cabin,  he  left  it,  and  passing  quickly  across  the  floor 
and  out  at  the  door,  seated  himself  on  the  bench  and 
took  up  the  position  he  had  occupied  when  Dan  last 
saw  him.  When  his  son,  satisfied  with  his  recon- 
noissance,  went  back  to  the  corn-crib,  Godfrey  again 
entered  the  cabin  and  stationing  himself  at  the  hole 
in  the  rear  wall,  saw  everything  that  was  done.  He 
was  highly  delighted  with  the  success  of  his  little 
stratagem.  The  money  was  in  his  possession  now, 
and  besides  he  had  secured  ammunition  enough  to 
last  him  a  month. 

"  The  amazin'  ongrateful  an'  ondutiful  chap,  to  hide 
things  from  his  poor  ole  dad  in  sich  a  scandalous  way 
as  that  ar,"  said  Godfrey,  giving  his  pocket  a  slap. 
"  He  wouldn't  lend  it  to  me  to  take  keer  of  it  fur 


THE   BURIED   TREASURE.  75 

him,  an'  now  I've  got  it  anyhow.  But  how  came 
he  by  it,  is  what  I'd  like  to  know.  Don't  stand  to 
reason  that  Silas  Jones  give  it  to  him,  kase  he  hain't 
been  a  doin'  no  work  for  Silas — no,  I'll  warrant  he 
hain't.  Dan  takes  arter  his  pop,  and  is  too  much 
of  a  gentleman  to  do  anything  like  work  when  he 
can  get  outen  it." 

How  Dan  came  by  the  money  in  the  first  place 
was  a  matter  that  interested  and  perplexed  Godfrey 
not  a  little.  He  seated  himself  on  the  bench  again, 
and  smoked  up  two  or  three  pipes  of  store  tobacco 
while  he  was  thinking  about  it.  But  he  could  come 
to  no  conclusion,  although  he  kept  his  mind  busy 
until  the  creaking  of  the  wagon  wheels  announced 
that  Dan  was  coming  back.  Then  Godfrey  had  other 
matters  to  think  of.  He  expected  a  stormy  scene 
with  his  son  when  the  latter  discovered  that  his  money 
had  been  removed  from  its  hiding  place,  and  he  pre- 
pared for  it  by  going  into  the  cabin  and  placing  the 
rawhide  where  he  could  find  it  at  a  moment's  warning. 
Then  he  pushed  back  his  sleeves,  seated  his  remnant 
of  a  hat  firmly  on  his  head,  and  seated  himself  on  the 
bench  again  to  await  Dan's  approach. 

"Yer  mam  hain't  come  hum  yet,  Dannie,"  said 
he,  when  the  boy  had  arrived  within  speaking  dis- 


76  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

tance.  "  She's  allers  away  when  she'd  oughter  be  here 
tidyin'  up  things,  an"  makin'  the  house  look  as  though 
white  folks  lived  here ;  but  we  won't  wait  fur  her. 
Ye  can  cook  as  well  as  any  woman,  Dannie,  an'  we'll 
have  some  of  that  fresh  meat  to  onct." 

Dan  made  no  reply  in  words.  He  put  his  hand 
into  his  pocket  and  looked  at  his  father ;  whereupon 
the  latter  arose  and  glanced  into  the  wagon.  It  was 
empty. 

"  Whar's  the  meat?"  he  demanded,  angrily. 

"  It's  done  sold,"  was  the  reply. 

For  a  moment  Godfrey  acted  as  if  he  were  about 
to  go  off  into  an  awful  passion.  He  spread  out  his 
feet,  clenched  both  his  hands  and  began  shaking  them 
in  the  air.  Then  he  jumped  up,  knocked  his  heels 
together,  and  having  thus  loosened  his  joints,  was 
ready  for  action.  Dan  saw  that  the  storm  was  coming, 
and  made  all  haste  to  put  himself  out  of  the  way  of 
its  fury,  first  by  jumping  out  of  the  wagon  on  the 
opposite  side,  so  that  he  would  have  a  fair  chance  to 
run  if  he  found  it  necessary,  and  second  by  trying  to 
appease  his  father. 

"  Hain't  that  the  way  to  get  rich,  pop, — by  takin' 
money  every  chance  ye  get?"  said  he.  "I  got  it 
an'  I  saved  it,  too.  Look  a  yer,"  he  added,  pulling 


THE   BURIED   TREASURE.  77 

some  bills  out  of  his  pocket,  and  extending  them 
across  the  wagon  toward  his  father. 

Godfrey  was  mollified  at  once.  The  sight  of  money 
always  made  him  good-natured,  especially  if  he  saw 
a  prospect  of  handling  it  himself. 

"How  much  ye  got  thar?"  he  asked,  in  a  very 
different  tone  of  voicev 

"  Three  dollars  an'  a  half,"  replied  Dan.  "  Silas 
Jones  done  offered  it  to  me  fur  my  beef,  an'  when  I 
axed  him  whar  was  the  money,  he  counted  it  right 
down.  Mebbe  I  could  lend  ye  another  dollar,  pop, 
if  ye'll  promise  to  pay  it  back." 

Godfrey  had  in  some  way  collected  his  wandering 
wits  by  this  time.  He  reviewed  the  situation  hastily 
while  Dan  was  speaking,  and  greatly  to  the  surprise 
of  the  boy,  who  had  never  known  him  to  refuse  money 
before,  replied : 

"  No,  Dannie,  the  money  is  yourn,  an'  I  wont  take 
it  from  ye.  I'll  have  plenty  of  my  own  in  a  week 
or  two — jest  as  soon  as  Ave  find  that  thar  bar'l.  But, 
Dannie,  I  had  got  my  mind  all  made  up  fur  somethin' 
nice,  an'  I  can't  no  ways  do  without  some  fresh  meat 
of  some  kind  fur  supper ;  so  if  ye'll  take  yer  rifle  an' 
go  right  out  an'  shoot  some  squirrels,  I'll  say  no 


78  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

more  about  yer  sellin'  the  meat.     I'll  unhitch  the 
critter,  too." 

Dan,  glad  to  be  let  off  so  easily,  and  wondering 
greatly  at  this  unusual  display  of  forbearance  on  the 
part  of  his  father,  readily  agreed  to  this  proposal. 
But  he  didn't  quite  like  the  look  of  things.  He  had 
a  suspicion  that  this  was  simply  a  ruse  on  the  part 
of  his  father,  and  that  when  he  came  out  from  behind 
the  wagon  and  entered  the  cabin  to  get  his  rifle,  God- 
frey would  seize  him  and  bring  the  rawhide  into  play. 
Experience  had  taught  him  that  his  father's  word 
was  not  always  to  be  depended  on,  so  he  was  very 
cautious  in  his  movements.  He  accompanied  the 
wagon  to  the  corn-crib,  waited  until  his  father  began 
to  unharness  the  mule,  and  then  darted  into  the  cabin, 
secured  his  rifle  and  ammunition,  and  quickly  put  a 
ten  rail  fence  between  him  and  his  sire.  Then  he 
began  to  breathe  easier. 

Being  left  to  himself,  Godfrey  proceeded  very  leis- 
urely to  unharness  the  mule  and  detach  him  from  the 
wagon.  Just  as  the  work  was  about  to  be  completed, 
he  heard  the  report  of  his  son's  rifle  away  off  in  the 
woods.  The  sound  had  a  strange  effect  upon  him. 
His  actions  seemed  to  say  that  he  had  been  waiting 
for  it.  Quickly  dropping  the  harness,  which  he  was 


THE    BURIED    TREASURE.  79 

on  the  point  of  hanging  in  its  accustomed  place,  he 
seized  the  wooden  pin  that  concealed  the  entrance  to 
Dan's  hiding-place,  and  pulled  it  out.  Then  he  took 
the  packages  from  his  pocket,  one  by  one,  and  put 
them  back  in  the  opening  just  as  he  had  found  them — 
the  powder  first,  the  lead  next,  then  the  caps,  and 
lastly  the  money ;  and  when  they  were  all  in,  he 
drove  the  pin  back  to  its  place  and  hung  the  harness 
upon  it.  He  seemed  to  feel  relieved  after  it  was 
done.  He  drew  a  long  breath,  and  started  for  the 
cabin  to  solace  himself  with  a  pipe,  as  he  always  did 
after  he  had  exerted  himself  in  any  unusual  degree. 

In  half  an  hour  the  sun  began  to  sink  behind  the 
trees  on  the  opposite  bank  of  the  river,  and  then 
Godfrey's  scattered  family  began  to  come  in,  one  after 
the  other.  First  came  his  wife,  who  had  been  over 
to  see  a  neighbor  with  whom  she  had  been  on  visiting 
terms  in  better  days.  On  her  arm  she  carried  a 
basket  covered  with  a  snow-white  napkin.  Godfrey's 
eyes  glistened  at  the  sight  of  it.  He  had  seen  a  good 
many  such  baskets  carried  into  his  house  of  late,  and 
he  knew  that  every  time  they  came  he  and  the  rest 
of  the  family  had  something  good  to  eat  for  a  day  or 
two. 

"  Now,  Godfrey,  if  you  will  chop  some  wood  and 


80  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

start  a  fire,  I'll  get  some  supper,"  said  his  wife, 
cheerfully. 

The  man  took  his  pipe  out  of  his  mouth  and 
groaned.  Chopping  wood  was  his  pet  aversion. 

"  Didn't  used  to  be  so  in  the  good  ole  days,  did  it, 
Susie  ?"  said  he,  with  a  long-drawn  sigh.  "  I  used 
to  have  plenty  of  niggers  to  do  that  ar  mean  work. 
Choppin*  wood  ain't  gentleman's  work,  Susie — no 
it  ain't!" 

"  But  somebody  must  do  it,  Godfrey,"  said  Mrs. 
Evans. 

"  So  they  must ;  but  I  can't  seem  to  stoop  to  it, 
somehow.  Here  comes  Dave.  Make  him  do  it." 

"  David  is  tired  out,  most  likely.  He's  been 
tramping  through  the  fields  all  the  afternoon." 

"  An'  hain't  I  tired  out  too,  I'd  like  to  know  ?" 
exclaimed  Godfrey.  "  Here  I've  been  an'  hoofed  it 
down  to  the  landin'  an'  worked  like  a  good  fellow  at 
that  shootin'  match.  Whew  !  It  jest  makes  me  ache 
all  over  to  think  of  all  I've  been  an'  done  since 
dinner.  'Sides,  Dave's  got  no  sort  o'  right  to  go  a 
trampin'  'round  the  fields  all  the  arternoon.  He'd 
oughter  be  to  hum  straightenin'  up  things.  But  it 
won't  be  so  long — not  longer  nor  next  week,  nohow 
— kase  that  thai-  bar'l  will " 


THE   BURIED   TREASURE.  81 

"  Now,  Godfrey  !"  interrupted  Mrs.  Evans. 

"  Now,  ole  woman  !"  retorted  Godfrey. 

"  I  knew  you  didn't  mean  what  you  said  to-day  at 
the  dinner  table,"  said  his  wife,  "and  I  wish  you 
wouldn't  talk  so  before  the  boys." 

"  About  that  thar  bar'l,  with  the  eighty  thousand 
dollars  into  it  ?  I  did  mean  it,  an'  I  tell  ye  I  will 
talk  so,  too !" 

"  Then  it  is  high  time  somebody  was  taking  charge 
of  your  children.  David  may  be  able  to  resist  such 
temptations,  but  I  don't  want  to  have  him  put  to  the 
test.  You  will  certainly  have  a  bad  influence  over 
Dan,  for  you  will  make  him  dishonest." 

The  mere  mention  of  that  word  seemed  to  irritate 
Godfrey.  He  jumped  up  from  the  bench,  spread  out 
his  feet,  and  taking  his  pipe  from  his  mouth  with 
one  hand,  extended  the  other  toward  his  wife. 

"  Now,  ole  woman,  jest  look  at  ye  !"  he  began ; 
and  then  he  bounded  into  the  air,  knocked  his  heels 
together,  and  came  down  on  his  feet  again  with  a  jar 
that  must  have  shaken  him  all  over.  "  An'  now  jest 
look  at  me !" 

"I  was  talking  with  Mrs.  Gordon  about  it  not 
more  than  an  hour  ago,"  said  Mrs.  Evans,  not  at  all 

alarmed  by  her  husband's  words  or  actions.     "  She 
6 


82  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

says  the  general  wants  to  do  something  for  David, 
and  will  use  his  influence  to  put  him  where  he  can 
make  a  man  of  himself.  lie  has  aspirations,  and  I 
believe  will  be  of  some  use  in  the  world  if  he  ever 
has  the  chance." 

Godfrey  put  his  pipe  back  into  his  mouth  and  sat 
down  again. 

"  What  did  you  say  them  things  is  that  Dave's 
got?"  he  asked. 

"Aspirations,"  replied  Mrs.  Evans. 

"What's  them,  an'  whar  did  he  get  'em  ?"  inquired 
Godfrey,  who  thought  they  might  be  something  of 
value  which  David  carried  in  his  pockets,  and  which 
might  be  stolen  after  the  boy  had  gone  to  bed. 

"  I  mean  that  he  doesn't  want  to  live  in  this  way 
all  his  life.  He  wants  to  do  and  be  something 
better." 

"  Oh !"  said  Godfrey,  somewhat  disappointed. 
"  Wai,  I  can  take  keer  of  him,  an'  without  no  help 
from  the  gen'ral,  who  can  jest  watch  his  own  boys 
an'  let  mine  be.  That  bar'l  will  fix  things  all  right !" 

Mrs.  Evans,  seeing  that  nothing  was  to  be  gained 
by  talking  to  her  husband,  passed  on  into  the  cabin  ; 
and  just  then  David  came  up.  He  carried  his  old 
single-barrel  shot  gun  over  his  shoulder,  a  bunch  of 


THE    BURIED   TREASURE.  83 

quails  in  his  hand,  and  Don  Gordon's  pointer  fol- 
lowed close  at  his  heels,  his  appearance  indicating 
that  he  had  been  doing  some  work  since  he  left  the 
cabin. 

"Wai,  sonny,"  said  Godfrey,  "how  does  the  pup 
understand  his  business  ?" 

"  0,  it  will  be  no  trouble  at  all  to  break  him," 
answered  David.  "  He  understands  some  things  as 
•well  as  an  old  dog  already." 

"  I'm  glad  to  hear  ye  say  so,  an'  I'm  glad  to  see 
ye've  done  so  well,"  said  Godfrey,  glancing  at  the 
bunch  of  quails.  "  Ye're  getting  to  be  a  right  smart 
hunter.  Ye  can  make  a  good  livin'  at  it  some  day, 
if  ye  want  to." 

"But  I  don't  want  to,"  said  David  quickly.  "  I 
can  make  a  better  living  at  something  else,  and  take 
care  of  my  mother,  too." 

"  That's  right,  sonny.  Allers  think  of  yer  mam, 
what's  done  so  much  fur  ye ;  an'  of  yer  pop,  too. 
He's  worked  monstrous  hard  to  edicate  ye  an'  keep 
a  roof  over  yer  head,  yer  pop  has,  an'  ye'd  oughter 
to  begin  to  pay  him  back  purty  soon.  Now,  put 
away  yer  gun  an'  go  an'  chop  some  wood  fur  yer 
mam  to  cook  supper  by.  She's  tired,  an'  so  be  I. 
We've  worked  powerful  hard  this  arternoon,  we 


84  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

have,  while  ye've  been  trampin'  about  enjoyin* 
yerself." 

Godfrey  settled  back  on  the  bench  and  gave  his 
undivided  attention  to  his  pipe  for  a  few  seconds  and 
then  suddenly  arose  and  entered  the  cabin.  He  had 
counted  the  moments  of  Dan's  absence  pretty  closely 
and  knew  about  what  time  to  look  for  his  return. 
He  knew,  too,  what  the  boy  would  do  first  when  he 
came  back,  and  wanted  to  be  where  he  could  watch 
all  his  movements.  He  applied  his  eye  to  the  hole 
in  the  wall  where  the  thinking  had  fallen  out,  and 
was  just  in  time  to  see  Dan  climb  the  fence  that 
separated  the  woods  from  the  little  clearing  in  which 
the  cabin  stood,  and  make  his  way  towards  the  corn- 
crib.  When  he  reached  it  he  paused  long  enough  to 
make  sure  that  there  was  no  one  in  sight,  and  then 
quickly  took  the  harness  down  from  its  place,  and 
pulled  out  the  pin.  A  hasty  glance  at  the  interior 
of  his  hiding  place,  satisfied  him  that  everything  was 
just  as  he  had  left  it;  and  this  being  settled  he 
pulled  something  out  of  his  pocket,  pushed  it  into 
the  opening,  replaced  the  pin,  and  hung  up  the 
harness,  just  as  David,  with  an  axe  on  his  shoulder, 
came  whistling  around  the  corner  of  the  cabin. 

Having  seen  all  he  wanted  to  see,  Godfrey  quickly 


THE    BURIED   TREASURE.  85 

crossed  the  cabin  and  seating  himself  on  the  bench 
pulled  vigorously  at  his  pipe. 

"  Fur  downright  Yankee  'cuteness  an'  smartness 
I  jist  think  I  lay  over  'most  anybody,"  thought  he, 
giving  his  knee  an  approving  slap.  "  I'm  jist  three 
dollars  an'  a  half  ahead  of  what  I  would  have  been, 
if  I  had  kept  that  money  when  I  had  it.  When  Dan 
told  me  that  he'd  done  sold  that  beef,  I  knowed  what 
he'd  do  with  the  money,  an'  that's  why  I  sent  him 
into  the  woods  arter  them  squirrels.  It  give  me  time 
to  fix  things  in  that  hole  jist  as  I  found  'em,  an'  now 
Dan's  done  gone  an'  put  that  three  an'  a  half  in  there 
too,  which  makes  me  a'most  seven  dollars  ahead  of 
the  hounds,  if  I  counted  it  up  on  my  fingers  right, 
an'  I  reckon  I  did.  I  hain't  agoin'  to  hunt  fur  that 
bar'l  to-night,  kase  when  Dan  goes  to  sleep  I  want 
to  slip  out  thar  an'  get  that  money,  afore  he  has  a 
chance  to  take  it  out  an'  put  it  sowewhar  else !" 

At  this  moment  Dan  came  around  the  corner  of 
the  cabin,  with  a  string  of  squirrels  thrown  over  his 
shoulder.  There  were  eight  of  them  altogether  and 
he  held  them  up  so  that  his  father  could  see  that 
every  one  of  them  was  shot  through  the  head.  God- 
frey complimented  him  on  his  skill,  and  when  the 
boy  passed  into  the  cabin  became  suddenly  silent  and 


86  THE   BURIED    TREASURE. 

thoughtful.  A  question  had  just  occurred  to  him. 
What  if  Dan  had  spent  some  of  the  money  at  the 
landing  before  he  came  home  ?  He  could  not  breathe 
freely  until  he  found  out. 

"Dannie,"  said  he,  as  the  boy,  having  put  away 
his  rifle,  came  out  again  and  seated  himself  on  a  log 
near  the  cabin  preparatory  to  skinning  the  squirrels 

he  had  shot,  "ye  told  me  ye'd  got how  much 

fur  that  quarter  of  beef?" 

"  Three  an'  a  half,  pop,"  was  the  reply,  and  Dan 
began  to  look  wild,  and  arose  rather  hastily  from  the 
log.  There  was  something  in  the  tone  in  which  this 
question  was  propounded  that  made  him  fear  that 
the  storm  he  had  quelled  a  short  time  before,  was 
gathering  again  ;  but  his  father's  next  words  reas- 
sured him. 

"  Yer  a  good  son,  Dannie,"  said  Godfrey.  "  An' 
that's  the  way  to  get  rich,  that  ar  way  is.  Take 
money  when  ye  can  get  it,  an'  keep  it,  too ;  mind 
that,  Dannie.  Don't  go  to  throwin'  it  about  loose 
an'  reckless,  but  hold  fast  to  it  with  sich  a  grip  that 
nothin'  can't  make  ye  let  up.  Ye  didn't  spend  none 
of  it  at  the  landin',  I  hope  ?" 

"No,  I  didn't.  Didn't  I  tell  ye  that  I  brung 
every  cent  of  it  hum  ?" 


THE    BURIED  TREASURE.  87 

"  That's  a  good  boy,"  said  Godfrey  ;  and  having 
set  his  fears  at  rest,  he  became  silent  again  and  puffed 
at  his  pipe  until  he  was  called  to  supper.  When  the 
meal  was  over,  he  went  back  to  his  pipe  again  ;  Dan 
made  a  pretence  of  chopping  wood ;  while  David 
assisted  his  mother  in  her  household  duties.  It  be- 
gan to  grow  dark  at  last,  and  then  Dan  threw  down 
his  axe  and  seated  himself  beside  his  father  who  was 
nodding  on  the  bench. 

"  Say,  pop,  be  we  goin'  to  look  fur  that  bar'l  to- 
night ?"  he  asked. 

"No,  Dannie,  we  hain't,"  was  the  sleepy  reply. 
"  I  can't.  Here  I've  been  an'  hoofed  it  down  to  the 
landin'  an'  back  since  dinner,  an'  I'm  jest  teetotally 
tuckered  out.  Wait  till  to-morrow  an'  then  we'll 
go!" 

Dan  was  surprised  at  this  answer.  He  was  tired 
himself,  but  the  prospect  of  digging  up  eighty 
thousand  dollars  in  gold  and  silver,  would  have  put 
life  and  energy  into  him  if  he  had  been  completely 
exhausted.  He  attributed  his  father's  refusal  to  his 
inherent  laziness  ;  but  something  he  discovered  the 
next  morning  showed  him  that  he  was  wrong  there. 

The  evening  waa  passed  in  much  the  same  manner 
that  every  evening  was  passed  under  Godfrey's  roof. 


88  THE    BURIED    TREASURE. 

There  were  no  candles  to  light  the  hovel,  and  even 
if  there  had  been  there  were  no  books  or  papers  to 
read,  no  games  or  anything  else  to  engage  in  to  make 
the  time  pass  pleasantly.  In  one  corner  of  the  cabin 
beside  the  fire-place  was  a  pile  of  resinous  knots 
which  David  had  picked. up  in  the  woods.  One  of 
these  was  occasionally  placed  on  the  coals,  and  while 
it  blazed  up  and  threw  a  feeble  light  about  the  room, 
David  and  his  mother  talked  of  the  past  and  specu- 
lated concerning  the  future.  This  was  the  way 
David's  education  had  always  been  conducted.  The 
remembrance  of  these  evening  interviews  with  his 
mother  went  through  life  with  him,  and  the  moral 
lessons  that  were  then  inculcated  stood  him  in  good 
hand  in  after  years. 

Dan  and  his  father  had  their  own  peculiar  ways 
of  putting  in  the  time  that  elapsed  between  the 
cleaning  away  of  the  supper  dishes  arid  the  hour  for 
retiring.  Dan  always  stretched  himself  out  on  the 
floor  and  went  to  sleep,  while  his  father  nodded  on 
the  bench  outside  the  door.  On  this  particular 
evening  Godfrey  did  not  seem  to  slumber  very  heavily 
for  every  now  and  then  he  would  straighten  up  and 
look  steadily  toward  the  corner  in  which  Dan  lay. 
He  appeared  to  be  waiting  for  something.  It  came 


.  THE    BURIED    TREASURE.  89 

at  last  in  the  shape  of  a  gentle  snore,  and  then  God- 
frey arose  and  stole  away  in  the  darkness.  A  few 
minutes  later  he  came  back,  and  taking  possession 
of  the  miserable  "  shake  down  "  he  called  a  bed,  was 
soon  sound  asleep. 


90  THE    BURIED   TREASURE.. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

OUR  FRIENDS,  THE  GORDONS. 

T>  EADER,  are  you  tired  of  Godfrey  Evans  and 
his  dismal  surroundings  ?  If  you  are,  let  us  go 
up  to  General  Gordon's,  where  we  shall  be  sure  of  a 
hearty  welcome  and  more  agreeable  companionship. 
The  house  in  which  the  general  and  his  family 
now  live  does  not  look  much  like  the  noble  mansion 
they  called  home  a  few  years  ago  ;  but  it  is  very 
neat  and  comfortable,  and  there  is  always  room  enough 
under  its  hospitable  roof  to  accommodate  visitors, 
who  are  greeted  and  entertained  in  good  old  southern 
style.  It  stands  on  the  spot  where  the  old  house 
stood,  and  in  the  midst  of  extensive  grounds,  which 
a  few  years  ago  looked  like  a  tropical  garden.  They 
still  retain  some  of  their  old-time  beauty,  but  yet 
wear  an  air  of  neglect ;  and  many  of  the  rare  and 
valuable  plants,  which  Mrs.  Gordon  and  her  daugh- 
ters took  so  much  pride  in  cultivating  and  pro- 
tecting from  the  fury  of  the  winter  rains  and  sleets, 
have  perished  for  want  of  care,  and  have  not  been 


THE   BURIED   TREASURE.  91 

replaced.  On  one  side  the  grounds  slope  down  to 
the  shores  of  Diamond  lake — a  little  sheet  of  water 
about  four  miles  long  and  half  a  mile  wide,  surrounded 
on  three  sides  by  a  dense  forest  of  tall  trees,  so  heavily 
draped  with  climbing  plants,  mosses  and  grape-vines, 
that  to  a  person  seated  in  a  boat  in  the  middle  of  the 
lake,  it  would  seem  to  be  almost  impenetrable. 

This  lake  is  not  like  our  northern  lakes.  The  grav- 
elly beach  is  wanting,  and  so  are  the  black  bass,  the 
pickerel  and  other  fine  game  fish  that  we  find  in  our 
waters.  The  shores  are  low  and  muddy,  the  banks 
are  thickly  lined  with  snags,  stumps  and  trees,  and  a 
northern  boy  would  look  twice  at  the  dark,  slimy 
water  before  he  would  think  of  going  in  bathing 
there.  If  he  made  up  his  mind  to  venture,  he  might 
think  better  of  it  if,  while  he  was  looking  around  for 
a  log  to  put  his  clothes  on,  he  should  discover  a  large 
moccasin  curled  up  in  the  edge  of  the  water,  and 
closely  watching  all  his  movements.  Are  these 
snakes  poisonous  ?  Ask  Don  and  Bert  what  they 
think  about  it.  They  will  tell  you  that  one  day  last 
August,  while  they  were  sittting  on  the  little  wooden 
wharf,  which  juts  out  into  the  lake  below  the  summer 
house,  bobbing  for  sun-fish,  they  happened  to  look 
into  the  water  a  little  way  from  the  shore,  and  saw 


92  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

what  appeared  to  be  the  head  and  neck  of  a  goose 
moving  rapidly  along.  But  they  knew  it  was  not 
that,  for  summer  is  not  the  time  for  waterfowl  down 
here,  and  besides  a  goose  does  not  swim  with  his  body 
submerged.  It  was  a  moccasin,  and  he  was  directing 
his  course  toward  a  log  which  lay  in  the  water  about 
twenty  yards  from  the  wharf.  The  boys  knew  he 
was  a  big  one,  or  he  could  not  have  held  his  head  so 
high  above  the  water ;  but  they  were  amazed  at  the 
sight  of  the  bulk  he  presented  to  view  when,  reaching 
the  log,  he  drew  himself  upon  it,  and  stretched  out 
flat  preparatory  to  taking  his  afternoon  nap.  The 
longer  the  boys  looked  at  him,  the  more  their  aston- 
ishment increased;  and  at  last  Don  quietly  laid 
down  his  fish-pole,  and  requesting  his  brother  to 
keep  an  eye  on  the  reptile,  arose  and  stole  off  to  the 
house.  When  he  returned  he  carried  a  light  breech- 
loading  shot  gun  in  his  hands — one  of  those  weapons 
that  "  break  in  two  in  the  middle."  Both  barrels 
were  loaded,  and  Don  had  two  more  cartridges  in  his 
pocket  for  use  in  case  the  first  should  not  prove 
effectual. 

The  moccasin  lay  in  such  a  position  that  Don  could 
not  see  his  head;  so  he  took  a  hasty  aim  at  the 
thickest  part  of  his  body,  and  fired  both  barrels  in 


THE   BURIED   TREASURE.  93 

quick  succession.  He  was  so  surprised  at  the  effect 
of  his  shot  that  he  did  not  think  of  the  cartridges  he 
had  in  his  pocket.  The  moccasin  was  not  killed,  but 
he  was  so  badly  wounded  that  he  could  not  get  off 
the  log. 

"  The  end  his  head  was  on  was  lively  enough," 
Don  afterward  told  his  father,  "  and  whirled  around 
at  a  great  rate  ;  but  the  end  his  tail  was  on  seemed 
to  be  completely  paralyzed,  for  it  did  not  move  at 
all."  He  made  the  most  desperate  efforts  to  crawl 
off  into  the  water,  and  failing  in  that,  turned  and  bit 
himself  twice,  and  a  moment  afterward  was  dead. 

Don  leaned  on  his  breech-loader  and  looked  at  his 
brother.  "That  settles  two  things,  Bert,"  said  he. 
"  One  is  that  we  have  all  been  mistaken  in  supposing 
that  moccasins  are  not  poisonous  ;  and  the  second  is, 
that  one  must  not  put  implicit  faith  in  everything 
he  sees  in  books.  Only  yesterday  I  was  reading  in 
my  natural  history  that  a  scorpion,  l  if  surrounded 
by  a  circle  of  fire  so  that  it  cannot  escape,  will  turn 
and  sting  itself  through  the  head,  this  being  the  only 
companion  of  man  in  suicide.'  This  little  incident 
proves  that  man  has  other  companions  in  suicide, 
doesn't  it?" 

Besides  these  disagreeable  and  dangerous  inhab- 


94  THE    BURIED   TREASURE. 

itants  of  the  lake,  there  are  others  in  the  shape  of 
alligator-gars  and  turtles.  The  latter  have  bills  like 
parrots,  and  grow  so  large  and  heavy  that  it  takes 
two  men  to  lift  one  of  them.  A  gar  is  a  long,  slender 
fish,  and  but  for  its  color,  might  be  taken  for  a 
gigantic  pickerel.  It  is  sometimes  found  eight  feet 
in  length.  People  say  they  are  harmless,  but  a  timid 
person  would  not  care  to  trust  one  too  far  after  looking 
at  its  mouthful  of  teeth. 

The  boys  have  two  canoes  and  one  sail-boat  in  the 
lake.  The  boat  was  built  in  St.  Louis,  and  a  steamer 
brought  it  to  the  landing,  where  Don  and  Bert  took 
charge  of  it  and  navigated  it  to  the  wharf  by  way  of 
the  Pass,  which  connects  the  lake  with  the  river. 
This  Pass  was  for  a  long  time  blocked  up  by  a  levee 
to  keep  the  waters  of  the  river  from  overflowing  the 
low  lands  about  the  lake.  During  the  war  it  was  cut 
by  the  Union  forces,  and  the  gunboats  came  down 
through  the  lake  and  entered  Coldwater  and  Talla- 
hatchee  rivers,  in  the  effort  to  get  behind  the  strong 
fortifications  at  Haines's  Bluff. 

Although  the  lake  is  but  a  poor  fishing  ground,  it 
is  a  splendid  place  for  ducks  and  geese.  About  a 
mile  from  the  house,  on  the  river  side  of  the  lake,  is 
a  long,  narrow  point,  which  stretches  almost  across  to 


THE   BURIED   TREASURE.  95 

the  opposite  bank,  and  it  is  there  that  the  best  shoot- 
ing is  to  be  found.  As  it  belongs  to  their  father  the 
boys  have  taken  possession  of  it,  and  on  the  highest 
and  dryest  part,  erected  a  rough  board  cabin  which 
goes  by  the  name  of  "  Our  Shooting-box."  It  looks 
dreary  enough  in  summer,  with  only  a  rusty  stove 
and  a  few  empty  cupboards  in  it  by  way  of  furniture ; 
but  when  the  "melancholy  days"  are  come,  and  the 
leaves  begin  to  fall,  and  the  autumnal  winds  to 
whistle  dismally  through  the  branches  of  the  forest 
— when  the  trumpet-like  notes  of  the  first  returning 
flock  of  brant  are  heard,  then  the  shooting-box  opens 
wide  its  hospitable  door,  and  receives  beneath  the 
shelter  of  its  roof  a  company  of  merry  youngsters, 
who  yearly  congregate  here  to  enjoy  the  splendid 
shooting  the  lake  affords.  Then  the  bare  floor  is 
covered  with  comfortable  rugs,  and  there  are  camp 
chairs  and  lounges  enough  to  accommodate  all  the 
young  sportsmen  who  can  crawl  into  the  cabin.  Then 
the  cupboards  are  abundantly  supplied  with  dishes, 
knives,  forks  and  other  table  furniture,  and  every- 
thing in  the  way  of  provisions  that  hungry  boys  can 
ask  for ;  and  in  the  loft,  which  extends  over  half  the 
room,  are  always  to  be  found  a  barrel  or  two  of 
hickory  nuts,  butternuts  and  pecans.  And  what 


98  THE    BURIED   TREASURE. 

sport  the  boys  enjoy  here  in  these  days !  A  person 
who  has  once  taken  part  in  it,  will  willingly  go  a 
hundred  miles  to  have  more  of  it.  The  shooting  is 
all  done  over  decoys.  These  decoys  are  pieces  of 
light  wood  shaped  like  ducks  and  geese,  and  painted 
to  resemble  them.  And  that  they  do  resemble  the 
natural  bird  very  closely,  is  proved  by  the  fact  that 
more  than  one  hunter  has  emptied  his  double-barrel 
into  a  flock  of  decoys  and  never  discovered  his  mis- 
take, until  the  disgusted  owner  of  the  wooden  birds 
jumped  up  from  behind  his  blind  and  demanded  to 
know  what  he  was  about. 

These  decoys  are  anchored  off  the  point  of  which 
we  have  spoken,  and  Don  and  Bert,  and  the  rest  of 
the  young  hunters,  hide  behind  their  blinds — little 
breastworks  of  bushes  erected  on  shore — and  with 
their  guns  in  their  hands,  hold  themselves  in  readi- 
ness to  shoot  at  the  first  flock  that  comes  within 
range.  And  they  are  never  obliged  to  wait  long. 
The  wild  fowl,  in  passing  from  one  end  of  the  lake  to 
the  other,  discover  what  they  suppose  to  be  a  com- 
pany of  their  friends  swimming  in  perfect  security 
near  the  shore,  and  stop  to  pay  them  a  visit ;  but 
just  as  they  swing  to  the  decoys,  their  ranks  are 
decimated  by  the  double-barrels,  and  it  is  a  lucky 


THE   BURIED   TREASURE.  97 

flock  that  gets  off  without  leaving  a  dozen  or  more 
of  its  number  behind.  The  birds  being  gone,  Don's 
pointers,  which  are  crouching  behind  the  blind  by 
their  master's  side,  retrieve  the  dead  and  wounded 
in  the  most  approved  style  ;  and  when  they  are  all 
brought  in  the  boys  are  ready  for  another  flock. 
When  night  comes  they  are  sure  to  be  very  tired  and 
hungry,  and  to  have  as  many  birds  as  they  care  to 
carry  home.  They  are  equally  certain  to  find  a 
smoking  supper  waiting  for  them  on  their  arrival  at 
the  shooting-box,  and  old  Cuff  ready  to  receive  them 
with  open  arms. 

During  the  evening  they  fight  their  battles  over 
again — telling  of  that  fine  shot  made  at  such  a 
distance  that  a  miss  seemed  certain,  or  that  clear 
miss  made  when  the  bird  ought  to  have  been  easily 
brought  to  bag — and  at  last  go  to  bed  to  pass 
through  the  same  exciting  scenes  again  in  their 
dreams.  We  do  not  blame  Don  and  his  friends  for 
thinking  a  good  deal  of  that  little  shooting-box,  for 
we  passed  one  of  the  pleasantest  months  of  our  life 
there. 

Having  seen  the  grounds  and  glanced  at  all  the 
interesting  things  outside  the  house,  let  us  go  in  for 
a  few  minutes.  The  wide  front  door  stands  invitingly 
7 


98  THE    BURIED   TREASURE. 

open — there  is  no  danger  to  be  apprehended  from 
tramps  and  sneak-thieves  in  this  out-of-the-way 
place — and  being  well  acquainted  with  all  the  inmates, 
and  feeling  quite  at  home  here,  we  enter  without 
ceremony.  Passing  along  the  hall  and  turning  to 
the  left  we  find  a  second  door,  also  standing  open, 
and  this  leads  us  into  the  apartment  occupied  by  Don 
and  his  brother  as  a  sitting  and  school  room.  They 
study  and  recite  their  lessons  here,  and  when  their 
school  duties  are  over,  they  have  the  room  to  them- 
selves. It  is  neatly  furnished,  and  in  it  are  many 
of  those  things  which  Dan  Evans  seems  to  regard  as 
indispensable  aids  to  happiness.  Of  course  he  does 
not  include  books  and  papers  in  the  list,  but  we  think 
they  are  very  necessary,  and  so  do  Don  and  Bert. 
Their  library  is  small  but  well  chosen,  and  made  up 
almost  entirely  of  books  from  which  they  can  learn 
something. 

We  enter  the  room  on  the  afternoon  of  the  same 
day  on  which  Dan  Evans  came  over  to  ask  for  five 
of  the  ten  dollars  that  Don  had  promised  David  for 
field-breaking  his  young  pointer.  We  have  seen  that 
he  got  the  money,  and  that  he  went  away  leaving 
Bert  reading  a  book.  We  find  him  engaged  in  the 
same  pleasing  occupation.  He  reads  for  a  few  min- 


THE    BURIED   TREASURE.  99 

utes,  and  then  placing  the  book  on  his  knee,  gazes 
thoughtfully  out  at  the  trees  in  the  yard. 

"  I  don't  see  why  it  can't  be  done,"  he  says,  to 
himself.  "  Father  has  a  light  spring  wagon  that  I 
know  he  would  let  us  take,  and  we  have  two  good 
ponies  to  draw  it.  We  couldn't  put  up  at  a  hotel  while 
we  are  gone,  but  who  cares  for  that  ?  We  own  a  good 
tent,  and  if  we  should  take  old  Cuff  along  to  act  as 
cook  and  camp-keeper,  we  could  live  as  well  as  we 
do  at  home  or  at  the  shooting-box." 

The  book  Bert  has  been  reading,  and  which  suggests 
this  train  of  thought,  is  Frank  Forester's  "Deer 
Stalkers."  It  tells  how  Harry  Archer  and  two 
companions  went  on  a  deer  hunt  somewhere  in  the 
state  of  New  York,  and  how  they  enjoyed  themselves. 
It  is  one  of  Don's  favorite  books ;  and  the  reason 
Bert  reads  it  to-day  is  because  it  happened  to  be  the 
first  one  he  picked  up  when  he  came  into  the  room. 
While  he  read  the  thought  occurred  to  him  that  if 
he  and  his  brother  should  follow  in  the  lead  of  the 
heroes  of  the  book,  they  could  spend  a  few  days  very 
pleasantly.  They  had  everything  needful  for  a 
week's  sojourn  in  the  woods,  or  a  month's,  and  a  trip 
like  that  would  just  suit  Don.  Their  school  term 
would  be  over  in  a  week — their  tutor  was  going  north 


100  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

to  spend  the  holidays  with  his  friends — and  Don, 
who  had  grown  very  fond  of  him  and  of  his  books, 
wondered  how  he  was  going  to  pass  the  time  during 
his  absence.  Of  course  there  was  the  shooting-box, 
but  one  does  not  care  to  spend  two  whole  months  in 
duck  hunting,  and  Don  had  often  been  heard  to 
declare  that  he  wished  he  could  go  somewhere  and 
spend  a  week  as  he  had  never  spent  one  before. 
Bert  thought  he  had  hit  upon  something  that  would 
please  him.  lie  had  heard  wonderful  reports  of  late 
of  the  abundance  of  game  to  be  found  in  an  adjoining 
county,  forty  miles  away.  Deer  were  so  plenty  that 
they  had  been  seen  in  the  corn-fields ;  a  bear  had 
been  known  to  approach  a  lonely  farm  house  in  broad 
daylight  and  walk  off  with  a  pig ;  and  one  day  a 
hunter,  who  was  roaming  the  woods  with  his  pack 
of  hounds,  encountered  some  animal  in  a  dense  cane- 
brake  which  almost  annihilated  his  dogs,  and  made 
off  before  the  hunter  could  shoot  him.  The  man  did 
fiot  know  what  sort  of  an  animal  it  was,  for  the  cane 
was  so  thick  that  he  could  not  see  him ;  but  there 
was  only  one  thing  in  that  part  of  the  country  that 
could  whip  out  a  pack  of  hounds  so  easily  and  com- 
pletely, and  that  was  a  panther.  Bert  did  not  like 
the  idea  of  encountering  such  game  as  this,  but  Doa 


THE   BURIED   TREASURE.  101 

would  not  have  hesitated  a  minute.  Besides  being 
famous  as  a  wing  shot,  and  being  very  fond  of  the 
breech-loader  which  created  such  havoc  among  the 
ducks,  snipe  and  quails,  he  took  care  to  have  it  known 
that  he  had  bagged  nobler  game ;  and  when  he  ex- 
hibited the  old-fashioned  muzzle  loading  rifle  which 
his  father  had  given  him,  and  with  which  he  had 
brought  down  his  first  deer,  he  never  forgot  to  men- 
tion that  four  very  fine  bucks  and  one  two  year  old 
bear  had  fallen  to  that  same  gun. 

"  Don  would  make  a  capital  Harry  Archer,"  said 
Bert,  continuing  the  soliloquy  we  have  interrupted, 
"  he  is  so  fearless  and  enthusiastic.  Old  Cuff  would 
make  a  very  good  Jim  Matlock — he's  black,  but  still 
he'll  do — and  instead  of  Smoke,  the  Scotch  greyhound 
that  could  perform  such  wonders  in  the  way  of  run- 
ning and  pulling  down  deer,  we  shall  have,  if  we 
have  a  mind  to  take  them  with  us,  six  of  the  best 
hounds  that  ever  came  from  Kentucky.  There'll  be 
nothing  wanting,  unless  it  be  a  Harry  Barhyte  or  a 
Ned  Wheeler  to  get  us  into  some  sort  of  a  scrape. 
If  they  should  turn  up,  it  would  make  it  all  the  more 
interesting  for  Don.  The  thought  of  meeting  one  of 
the  panthers,  which  they  say  are  plenty  in  the  cane- 
brakes,  is  not  a  very  pleasant  one,  and  almost  makes 


102  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

me  say  that  I  will  stay  at  home ;  but,  now  that  I 
come  to  think  of  it,  we  need  not  camp  out  an  hour 
unless  we  please.  Bob  Harrington  lives  over  there, 
in  the  very  midst  of  the  wilderness,  and  we'd  be  wel- 
come at  his  house  as  long  as  we  chose  to  stop  with  him. 
Halloa !"  he  added  aloud,  as  a  step  was  heard  in  the 
hall,  and  his  brother  came  rapidly  into  the  room. 
"  I  was  just  thinking  about  you." 

"  You're  always  thinking  of  somebody  besides 
yourself,"  replied  Don,  drawing  a  chair  to  his  broth- 
er's side  and  flourishing  a  letter  which  he  held  in  his 
hand.  "  Your  face  tells  me  that  you  have  something 
pleasant  on  your  mind :  what  is  it  ?  Let  us  have 
all  the  sunshine  we  can,  for  the  clouds  are  coming — 
one  cloud  at  least." 

"What's  the  matter?"  asked  Bert,  who  thought 
by  the  scowl  on  his  brother's  face  that  the  clouds  had 
come  already,  "  and  whom  is  that  letter  from  ?" 

"  Let  us  have  the  good  news  first,"  replied  Don, 
putting  the  letter  behind  his  chair,  as  his  brother 
reached  out  his  hand  to  take  it.  "  This  will  keep." 

"  So  will  the  other  ;  but  since  you  are  so  deter- 
mined, I  suppose  I  shall  have  to  tell  you.  When 
our  tutor  goes  away  next  week  we  shall  have  two 
whole  months  to  ourselves,  and  instead  of  spending 


THE    BURIED   TREASURE.  103 

all  the  time  at  the  shooting-box,  I  propose  that  some 
fine  morning  we  put  the  ponies  to  the  spring  wagon, 
take  our  tent,  one  of  our  canoes  and  everything  else 
we  need  for  camping  out,  and  spend  a  week  or  so  on 
Coldwater." 

"  Among  the  deer  and  bears  !"  exclaimed  Don. 
"  That  would  be  just  the  idea,  if  we  could  only  carry 
it  out." 

"  And  why  can't  we  carry  it  out  ?" 

"Because  we  are  not  going  to  have  those  two 
months  all  to  ourselves ;  and  besides,  one  of  the  two 
fellows  who  is  about  to  intrude  his  most  unwelcome 
presence  upon  us,  is  not  such  a  boy  as  we  should  like 
to  have  in  our  camp." 

"  What  do  you  mean  ?"  asked  Bert. 

"  I  can  best  answer  that  question  by  reading  a 
portion  of  this  letter,"  replied  Don.  "  It  came  more 
than  a  week  ago.  Father  and  mother  have  consulted 
about  it,  and  have  finally  consented,  most  reluctantly, 
to  accept  the  proposition  it  contains.  I  am  afraid  it 
was  a  bad  day  for  us  when  they  did  so.  Our  fun  is 
all  knocked  in  the  head.  In  the  first  place  the  letter 
is  from  Uncle  Bob,  and  relates  to  our  cousins,  Clar- 
ence and  Marshall  Gordon." 


104  THE    BURIED   TREASURE. 

"Are  they  coming  here?"  asked  Bert,  his  face 
brightening  with  joyous  anticipation. 

Don  looked  sharply  at  his  brother  for  a  minute  or 
two  before  he  spoke.  "Yes,  they're  coming,"  said 
he.  "  I  don't  know  what  you  may  think  about  it, 
but  I  am  sorry ;  and  so  are  father  and  mother." 

"  Then  why  do  they  let  them  come?" 

"Because  they  can't  help  it.  Father  is  under 
heavy  obligations  to  Uncle  Bob,  who  has  done  him 
numberless  good  turns,  and  he  says  he  can't  well  re- 
fuse to  grant  this,  the  only  favor  that  Uncle  Bob  has 
ever  asked  of  him." 

"  But  why  don't  they  want  Clarence  and  Marshall 
here  ?"  asked  Bert,  who  could  not  see  why  his  parents 
should  object  to  the  visit  of  relatives  whom  he  and 
his  brother  had  not  seen  for  many  years — so  many, 
in  fact,  that  he  could  not  remember  of  ever  having 
met  them  at  all.  They  (that  is,  Clarence  and  Mar- 
shall) had  always  lived  with  their  parents  in  Europe; 
and  it  was  only  about  a  year  ago  that  they  had  taken 
up  their  abode  in  a  northern  city  where  their  father 
was  engaged  in  business. 

"  This  will  explain  everything,"  said  Don ;  and 
as  he  spoke,  he  settled  back  in  his  chair  and  opened 
the  letter. 


THE   BURIED    TREASURE.  105 


CHAPTER  VII. 

THE  NEW  COMERS. 

portion  of  the  letter  which  Don  read  was 
as  follows : — 

"  And  now  I  come  to  the  matter  about  which  I 
sat  down  to  write  to  you.  It  relates  to  my  two  boys, 
Clarence  and  Marshall — more  particularly  to  the 
first.  I  am  very  anxious  to  remove  them  both  from 
the  temptations  to  which  they  are  exposed  in  this 
big  city.  Since  we  returned  from  Europe  they  have 
been  a  source  of  constant  anxiety  to  their  mother  and 
myself.  The  first  thing  they  did  was  to  make 
acquaintances  and  friends  among  those  I  should  not 
have  chosen  for  their  companions,  if  I  had  had  the 
poAver  of  selection  in  my  own  hands.  Being  com- 
pletely engrossed  in  the  cares  of  business,  I  could 
not  give  the  attention  to  their  training  that  I  ought 
to  have  done ;  and  the  first  thing  that  brought  me 
to  a  sense  of  my  duty  and  my  neglect  in  this  matter, 
was  the  visit  of  a  police  officer,  who  called  at  my 


106  THE   BURIED    TREASURE. 

office,  and  informed  me  that  Clarence  had  been 
arrested  in  a  saloon  for  engaging  in  a  brawl  over  a 
game  of  cards " 

"  Gracious  !"  gasped  Bert. 

"  0,  he's  a  nice  bird,"  said  Don,  in  great  disgust. 
"  And  that  isn't  the  worst  of  it.  He  is  untruthful 
and  dishonest.  His  father  doesn't  say  so,  but  you 
can  gain  that  idea  from  the  language  he  uses.  Listen 
to  this : — 

"  '  For  engaging  in  a  brawl  over  a  game  of  cards, 
and  that  he  would  be  held  until  his  examination  came 
off,  unless  I  was  willing  to  go  his  bail.'  ' 

u  What  does  that  mean  ?" 

"  It  means  that  if  his  father  did  not  give  bonds 
for  his  appearance  when  he  was  wanted,  he  would  be 
put  into  a  cell  and  locked  up." 

"  I  got  him  out  of  the  scrape,"  the  letter  went  on, 
"  and  when  I  came  to  inquire  into  his  past  life  I 
found  that  his  record  was  not  such  an  one  as  a  father 
could  be  proud  of.  I  took  him  out  of  school  and 
placed  him  in  my  office  where  he  still  is  ;  but  I  fear 
I  have  thrown  him  directly  in  the  way  of  temptation 
instead  of  taking  him  out  of  it.  He  has  begun  to 
develop  traits  which  I  did  not  suppose  he  possessed, 
and  which  lead  me  to  distrust  his  every  word  and 


THE   BURIED   TREASURE.  107 

act.  I  cannot  put  the  least  faith  in  him.  He  cares 
for  nothing  in  the  world  but  money,  and  when  he 
gets  it,  it  goes  for  cigars,  lager  beer  and  clothes. 
Marshall  is  not  very  badly  contaminated  as  yet,  but 
he  is  so  easily  influenced  that  I  fear  for  his  future,  un- 
less he  is  speedily  removed  from  these  surroundings. 
Now,  can  you  take  these  two  boys  and  take  care  of 
them  for  the  winter,  or  until  I  can  make  some  per- 
manent arrangements  for  them  ?  If  I  had  had  my 
way,  I  should  have  sent  Clarence  to  sea  six  months 
ago,  for  I  believe  that  a  little  wholesome  discipline 
would  make  a  great  change  in  him ;  but  his  mother 
will  not  listen  to  it.  Something,  however,  must  be 
done  at  once.  They  are  both  worth  saving,  and  I 
hope  that  an  acquaintance  with  Don  and  Bert,  who,  I 
am  told,  are  all  that  sons  should  be  (Don  blushed  when 
he  read  this,  for  he  could  not  forget  that  wrong  act 
that  had  resulted  in  his  expulsion  from  the  academy), 
and  daily  intercourse  with  them  will  show  my  boys 
that  there  is  something  attractive  in  an  upright, 
honorable  life." 

This  was  all.  The  general's  brother  was  a  man 
of  few  words,  and  as  this  was  a  subject  he  did  not 
like  to  dwell  upon,  he  hurried  through  with  it  as 


108  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

quickly  as  possible.  He  evidently  wanted  that  the 
general  should  know  just  what  sort  of  boys  he  would 
open  his  doors  to,  if  he  agreed  to  accept  the  responsi- 
bility urged  upon  him,  but,  at  the  same  time,  he  was 
anxious  that  the  delinquents  should  appear  in  as 
favorable  a  light  as  possible,  and  so  did  not  say  more 
than  he  thought  to  be  absolutely  necessary. 

"Well,  I  am  sorry  they  are  coming,"  said  Bert, 
as  Don  folded  the  letter  and  placed  it  in  the  envelope. 

"  So  am  I,"  said  Don. 

"  The  idea  of  a  great  big,  hulking,  beer-drinking, 
tobacco-smoking,  and  card-playing  boy  loafing  about 
our  house,"  continued  Bert,  betrayed  by  his  excite- 
ment into  using  stronger  language  than  he  generally 
employed,  and  thinking  of  Godfrey  Evans  as  he  spoke. 
"  I  wonder  how  he  became  so  far  gone  before  his 
parents  found  it  out !" 

"  So  did  I — but  father  explained  it  to  me — or  rather 
to  mother,  and  I  overheard  it.  He  says  Uncle  Rob- 
ert sees  but  little  of  his  family  on  any  day  except 
Sundays.  He  leaves  home  early  in  the  morning, 
and  does  not  return  again  until  nine  or  ten  o'clock 
at  night.  The  management  of  the  boys  is  left  entirely 
to  their  mother,  who  doesn't  care  what  they  do,  so 
long  as  they  keep  out  of  the  way  and  don't  trouble 


THE   BURIED  TREASURE.  109 

her.  As  one  can't  see  to  them,  and  the  other  won't, 
they  have  been  entirely  neglected." 

"  And  this  letter  has  been  here  a  week  and  we 
never  knew  it,"  said  Bert. 

"  Yes,  and  a  good  deal  longer  than  that,"  said 
Don  ;  "  long  enough  for  the  matter  to  be  considered, 
a  favorable  answer  to  be  returned,  and  a  second  letter 
to  be  received  from  Uncle  Bob.  That  letter  states 
that  the  boys  left  Cincinnati  on  the  Emma  Deane ; 
and  father  has  just  learned  from  Mr.  Jones  that  she 
is  due  at  our  landing  some  time  to-night  or  early 
to-morrow  morning." 

Bert  was  sorry  that  the  new-comers  were  expected 
so  soon.  He  had  hoped  to  have  a  week  or  two  in 
which  to  think  about  them,  and  make  up  his  mind 
how  he  would  act  after  they  arrived.  Although  these 
cousins  were  the  sons  of  their  father's  only  brother, 
they  were  utter  strangers  to  Don  and  Bert.  Their 
parents  said  they  had  seen  them  once,  but  as  they 
were  only  three  years  old  at  the  time,  they  could  not 
be  expected  to  remember  much  about  them.  Since 
then  Clarence  and  Marshall  had  lived  altogether  in 
Europe,  and  Don  and  Bert  had  not  heard  from  them 
on  an  average  of  once  a  year. 

"I  too  am  sorry  that  they  are  coming  so  soon," 


110  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

said  Don,  who  could  tell  by  the  expression  of 
Bert's  face  what  was  passing  in  his  mind.  "  You 
see  now  why  your  idea  of  a  trip  to  Coldwater  must 
be  given  up,  at  least  until  we  know  more  about  our 
expected  friends.  At  first  father  thought  he  would 
not  say  anything  to  us  about  the  contents  of  this 
letter,  for  he  did  not  want  to  prejudice  us  against 
Clarence  and  Marshall ;  but  afterward  he  decided 
that  we  ought  to  know  what  sort  of  fellows  they  are, 
so  that  we  may  be  on  our  guard.  We  are  going  to 
have  a  long  talk  about  it  this  evening." 

And  they  did,  and  the  whole  family  was  present. 
It  was  a  kind  of  council  in  which  the  matter  was 
thoroughly  discussed,  and  plans  laid  for  the  reception 
of  the  expected  visitors.  The  general  explained  why 
he  did  not  feel  at  liberty  to  refuse  his  brother's  re- 
quest— this  being  a  private  matter  is  something  in 
which  we  have  no  interest — and  urged  upon  his  boys 
the  necessity  of  regulating  their  own  conduct,  so  that 
Clarence  and  his  brother  might  see  that  there  was 
more  happiness,  and  much  more  respectability  in  a 
sober,  well-regulated  course  of  life,  than  in  the  career 
upon  which  they  seemed  to  have  entered.  The  new- 
comers, he  was  sorry  to  say,  had  a  great  many  bad 
habits,  and  their  father  hoped  that  by  sending  them 


THE    BURIED   TREASURE.  Ill 

into  the  country  for  a  season  they  might  forget  some 
of  them,  and  by  being  brought  under  better  influences, 
be  finally  led  to  see  the  folly  of  them  and  induced  to 
abandon  them  altogether.  One  thing  was  certain, 
the  general  said :  there  was  no  dram-shop  in  the 
neighborhood,  not  even  at  the  landing,  and  beer- 
drinking  and  card-playing  were  two  practices  that 
Clarence  would  have  to  forego  so  long  as  he  remained 
in  that  part  of  the  country.  Tobacco  was  plenty, 
but  it  was  not  at  all  likely  that  a  boy  who  had  been 
in  the  habit  of  buying  cigars  worth  ten  and  perhaps 
twenty-five  cents  apiece,  would  stoop  to  a  cob-pipe  and 
plug  "  Varginy."  Besides  he  was  to  have  no  money, 
so  his  father  said,  not  a  cent ;  and  taking  it  altogether, 
it  seemed  as  if  Clarence  must  turn  over  a  new  leaf 
while  he  was  under  his  uncle's  roof,  whether  he 
wanted  to  do  so  or  not. 

In  regard  to  Marshall,  the  younger  brother,  the 
general  had  not  much  to  say,  for  his  father  had 
scarcely  mentioned  him  in  his  letters.  But  he  in- 
ferred that  he  was  following  in  the  footsteps  of 
Clarence,  and  that,  being  easily  led  in  any  direction, 
there  might  be  some  hope  for  him  if  he  were  taken 
in  hand  at  once. 

The   unlooked-for   intrusion  of  these  discordant 


112  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

elements  upon  their  quiet,  happy  family  circle, 
afforded  the  boys  something  to  talk  about  that  night, 
and  kept  them  awake  long  after  they  ought  to  have 
been  asleep.  Bert  did  riot  take  it  quite  so  much  to 
heart  after  the  first  surprise  was  over.  Indeed  he 
hoped  that  the  visit  might  prove  both  pleasant  and 
profitable  to  all  concerned.  Clarence  and  Marshall 
were  his  cousins,  and  Bert  had  a  warm  place  in  his 
heart  for  them,  even  if  they  were  not  just  such  boys 
as  he  would  have  chosen  for  his  companions.  Don, 
on  the  other  hand,  took  but  little  pains  to  conceal 
the  annoyance  he  felt.  Cousin  or  no  cousin,  he  did 
not  want  such  a  companion  as  he  knew  Clarence 
would  prove  to  be,  and  he  hoped  his  uncle  Robert 
would  hurry  and  make  up  his  mind  to  something,  so 
that  his  visit  might  be  brought  to  an  end  as  speedily 
as  possible.  The  expected  visitors  broke  in  on  his 
arrangements  in  a  way  he  did  not  like.  It  brought 
his  school  term  to  an  end  a  week  sooner  than  it  ought 
to  have  been  ended.  Of  course  it  would  not  be  polite 
to  leave  Clarence  and  Marshall  to  themselves  when 
they  arrived,  and  in  order  to  give  Don  and  Bert 
an  opportunity  to  make  things  pleasant  for  them, 
the  general  decided  that  the  school  should  close  at 
once. 


THE   BURIED   TREASURE.  113 

Morning  came  at  last,  and  immediately  after  break- 
fast the  heavy,  old-fashioned  family  carriage  was 
drawn  to  the  door  by  a  span  of  splendid  iron-gray 
horses,  the  tutor's  trunk  was  strapped  on  behind,  and, 
he,  in  company  with  the  general  and  his  two  boys, 
stepped  in,  and  the  carriage  was  driven  to  the  land- 
ing. Just  as  they  arrived  there,  a  steamer  appeared 
in  the  bend,  heading  up  the  river.  The  general  sig- 
nalled to  her  with  his  handkerchief,  and  she  landed, 
took  the  tutor  and  his  luggage  aboard,  and  continued 
on  her  way.  The  boys  watched  her  in  silence  until 
she  disappeared  around  the  point.  They  had  grown 
to  like  their  tutor,  and  were  sorry  to  see  him  go ; 
but  it  was  some  consolation  to  them  to  know  that  the 
separation  would  not  be  a  long  one. 

The  Gray  Eagle — that  was  the  name  of  the 
steamer  that  took  the  tutor  away — having  disap- 
peared, the  boys  turned  their  attention  to  a  thick 
cloud  of  smoke  farther  up  the  river,  and  behind  a 
point  which  jutted  out  from  the  right  bank.  Silas 
Jones,  who  was  at  the  landing  and  expecting  goods 
by  the  first  steamer  from  Memphis,  told  the  general 
that  the  Gray  Eagle  was  the  only  packet  that  had 
gone  up  the  river  since  midnight,  so  the  boys  knew 

that  the  smoke  they  were  looking  at  must  come  from 

8 


114  THE    BURIED   TREASURE. 

the  chimneys  of  some  steamer  bound  to  New  Orleans. 
They  watched  the  cloud  as  it  moved  slowly  along 
above  the  trees,  and  finally  at  the  end  of  an  hour  a 
side-wheel  steamer  suddenly  made  her  appearance  in 
the  bend. 

"  That's  the  Emmy  Deane,"  said  a  well-known 
voice. 

The  boys  turned  and  saw  Godfrey  Evans  standing 
close  behind  them.  He  was  barefooted  as  usual,  and 
carried  his  rifle  on  his  shoulder. 

"  How  do  you  know  it  is  the  Emma  Deane  ?"  asked 
Don. 

"Ah!  mornin',  Mr.  Don,"  exclaimed  Godfrey. 
*'  Proud  to  see  ye,  sar.  How's  all  the  folks  ?  Mine 
is  only  jest  tol'able,  thank  ye,  'ceptin'  the  ole  woman, 
an'  she's  poorly.  How  do  I  know  that's  the  Emmy 
Deane  ?  Kase  I  know  it  is,  an'  I  can  tell  a'most 
every  boat  on  the  river  that  stops  here,  too.  When 
she  whistles,  ye'H  see  she's  got  four — two  high  up 
an'  two  low  down.  Mr.  Don,"  added  Godfrey,  low- 
ering his  voice,  "  can  I  see  ye  jest  a  minute,  please, 
sar?" 

Don,  wondering  what  business  Godfrey  could  have 
with  him,  which  was  of  so  private  a  nature  that  it 
could  not  be  spoken  of  in  the  hearing  of  his  father 


THE   BURIED   TREASURE.  115 

and  brother,  drew  off  on  one  side,  and  the  man,  after 
clearing  his  throat,  continued : 

"  We're  powerful  poor  folks,  Mr.  Don,  an'  the  ole 
woman  she  was  tuk  down  with  the  fever  'n'  ager 
last  night,  an'  done  shook  the  roof  clean  ofTn  the 
house ;  an'  Dave,  he  hain't  got  a  shoe  to  bless  hisself 
with." 

"Well,"  said  Don,  when  Godfrey  paused  and 
looked  at  him. 

"  Wai,  Dave,  he  wants  me  to  ax  ye,  Mr.  Don, 
please  sar,  would  ye  mind  givin'  him  five  dollars  this 
mornin',  sar,  kase  ye  know  ye  promised  him  ten  fur 
breakin'  that  pinter  pup,  an'  we're  powerful  poor 
folks,  ye  know." 

"  Certainly  I'll  give  it  to  him,"  replied  Don, 
quickly.  "  He  can  have  it  at  any  time  for  the  ask- 
ing. I  would  have  given  it  to  him  yesterday  if  I 
had  known  that  he  wanted  it." 

"  Wai,  he  didn't  want  it  yesterday,  an'  he  wouldn't 
a  wanted  it  to-day,  only  the  ole  woman's  got  the 
fever  'n'  ager,  an'  we's  so  poor.  He  told  me  to  ax 
ye  would  ye  give  it  to  me,  an'  I'll  give  it  to  him, 
please,  sar." 

Don  readily  consented  to  this.  He  produced  his 
pocket-book  and  handed  the  five  dollars  to  Godfrey, 


116  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

who  clutched  the  money  and  made  off  with  it  in  such 
haste  that  Don  looked  at  him  in  great  surprise. 

"  What  did  he  want  of  you  ?"  asked  Bert,  when 
his  brother  came  back  to  the  carriage. 

"  He  wanted  some  of  the  money  I  promised  David 
for  breaking  that  pointer,"  was  the  reply. 

"  0,  that  reminds  me,"  said  Bert.  "  How  much 
did  you  give  him  ?" 

"  I  gave  him  half  of  it." 

"  And  I  gave  him  the  other  half  yesterday,  so 
David  is  paid  up  in  full,  and  you  owe  mother  five 
dollars.  Dan  dunned  me,  and  I  borrowed  the  money 
to  give  him.  He  came  over  to  see  you,  but  as  you 
were  not  at  home,  I  acted  in  your  place.  Was  that 
right  ?" 

"  Perfectly.  I  told  David  he  could  have  the  money 
whenever  he  wanted  it.  I  am  somewhat  surprised, 
though,  for  I  understood  him  to  say  that  he  intended 
to  keep  some  of  it  to  send  off  those  quails  with." 

All  this  while  the  steamer  had  been  approaching 
the  landing,  and  the  nearer  she  came,  the  more  cer- 
tain did  the  people,  who  were  standing  around,  declare 
themselves  to  be  that  it  was  the  Emma  Deane.  At 
last  she  whistled,  and  there  proved  to  be  "  two  high 
up  and  two  low  down  ;"  in  other  words,  there  were 


THE   BURIED   TREASURE.  117 

four  whistles,  and  being  attached  to  the  same  steam- 
pipe,  of  course  they  all  sounded  at  once — two  utter- 
ing notes  high  up  on  the  musical  scale,  and  the  others 
emitting  a  deep  bass.  Then  all  doubts,  if  any  re- 
mained, were  cleared  away.  She  was  the  Emma 
Deane,  and  she  was  going  to  land.  This  she  did  a 
few  minutes  afterward.  The  moment  her  bow  touched 
the  shore,  a  deck-hand  sprang  out  with  a  line  which 
he  made  fast  to  a  convenient  tree ;  a  staging  was 
pushed  ashore,  and  the  crew  began  bringing  out  the 
goods  Silas  Jones  was  expecting  from  Memphis. 
The  boys  ran  their  eyes  over  the  passengers  who 
were  crowded  on  her  boiler-deck,  while  the  general 
at  once  made  his  way  on  board  to  hunt  up  his 
nephews.  He  returned  about  five  minutes  later,  fol- 
lowed by  two  gentlemanly-looking  youths,  and  these 
in  turn  were  followed  by  a  negro  porter  who  carried 
a  heavy  trunk  on  his  shoulder. 

It  is  hard  to  tell  just  what  sort  of  fellows  Don 
expected  to  see,  but  it  was  plain  from  the  expression 
on  his  face,  and  the  manner  in  which  he  passed 
through  the  ceremony  of  introduction,  that  he  was 
surprised,  to  say  the  least ;  while  Bert's  bewilderment 
was  too  palpable  to  escape  notice.  The  latter  knew 
but  little  of  the  world,  and  had  somehow  got  it  into 


118  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

his  head  that  vices  of  every  description  came  in  shapes 
so  easy  to  be  recognised,  that  any  one  would  know 
them.  When  he  heard  that  his  cousin  Clarence  was 
in  the  habit  of  using  tobacco  and  playing  cards,  he 
put  him  down  as  a  lazy,  good-for-nothing  fellow,  much 
of  the  same  stamp  as  Godfrey  Evans ;  but  here  was 
a  dashing  youth,  dressed  in  the  latest  fashion,  who 
looked  as  though  he  might  know  a  thing  or  two,  and 
who  conducted  himself  in  an  easy,  off- hand  manner, 
that,  to  diffident  little  Bert,  was  perfectly  charming. 
He  resembled  Godfrey  Evans  in  about  the  same  degree 
that  his  own  father  did.  He  appeared  to  be  as  much 
at  ease  as  though  he  had  come  among  friends  with 
whom  he  had  long  been  acquainted,  and  his  younger 
brother,  Marshall,  was  not  a  whit  behind  him  in  this 
respect ;  while  Bert  could  not  say  a  word  in  response 
to  their  polite  and  cordial  greeting,  and  even  Don, 
who  was  usually  self-possessed,  hesitated  and  blushed 
and  looked  as  embarrassed  as  though  he  had  been 
caught  in  some  act  of  mischief. 

The  introduction  being  over,  the  trunk  was  strapped 
in  its  place  behind  the  carriage,  our  party  all  got  in, 
and  Don  picked  up  the  reins  and  drove  homeward. 
On  the  way  Don  and  Bert  had  leisure  to  collect  their 
wits  a  little,  and  while  doing  their  part  toward  main- 


THE    BURIED   TREASURE.  119 

taining  the  conversation  that  followed,  devoted  them- 
selves principally  to  making  a  mental  estimate  of 
their  visitors — a  proceeding  on  their  part  which  was 
closely  imitated  by  Clarence  and  Marshall.  What 
results  they  arrived  at  perhaps  we  shall  see  by  and 

by- 

Clarence  would  have  attracted  attention  almost  any- 
where. He  was  a  handsome  fellow,  and  the  ease  and 
readiness  with  which  he  expressed  himself  in  conver- 
sation, astonished  Don,  who  was  himself  blessed  with 
more  than  an  ordinary  command  of  language.  He 
described  with  great  fluency  and  animation  several 
interesting  and  amusing  incidents  that  had  fallen  under 
his  notice  during  the  journey  from  Cincinnati,  and 
seemed  to  be"  so  well  posted  in  every  subject  that  came 
up  for  discussion,  and  yet  so  modest,  that  Don  began 
to*  accuse  himself  of  having  been  guilty  of  a  very 
ungenerous  act,  in  that  he  had  allowed  himself  to 
become  prejudiced  against  his  cousin  before  he  saw 
him.  He  told  himself  that  he  would  have  in  him  a 
most  agreeable  companion,  and  one  from  whom  he 
could  learn  something. 

Bert  formed  nearly  the  same  opinion  of  Marshall. 
These  two  sat  on  the  back  seat  while  the  rest  of  the 
party  occupied  the  one  in  front,  and  being  left  in  a 


120  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

great  measure  to  themselves,  imagined  by  the  time 
they  reached  home,  that  they  had  had  opportunity 
to  become  well  acquainted.  They  found  out  not  a 
few  of  each  other's  likes  and  dislikes,  and  were  both 
pleased  to  learn  that  they  had  many  ideas  in  common. 
Marshall  liked  to  fish  and  hunt  occasionally,  but  he 
liked  a  game  of  chess  or  checkers  better,  and  cards 
and  billiards  better  than  anything.  He  opened  his 
eyes  when  he  learned  that  Bert  had  never  seen  a 
billiard  table,  and  that  he  did  not  know  one  card 
from  another.  He,  Marshall,  had  been  accustomed 
to  these  things  all  his  life,  he  said,  but  he  thought 
he  could  get  on  very  well  without  them.  His  mother 
wanted  him  to  give  them  up,  and  he  was  going  to  do 
it  to  please  her.  He  seemed  to  think  a  good  deal  of 
his  mother,  and  Bert  told  himself  that  that  was  a 
redeeming  trait,  and  would  do  much  toward  bringing 
him  out  all  right  in  the  end. 

The  party  reached  home  in  due  time,  and  found 
Mrs.  Gordon  and  her  daughters  waiting  to  receive 
them.  The  visitors  were  cordially  welcomed,  and 
after  a  short  visit  in  the  parlor,  were  shown  to  their 
room  and  left  to  themselves.  As  soon  as  Clarence 
had  closed  and  locked  the  door,  he  threw  himself  into 


THE   BURIED   TREASURE.  121 

the  nearest  chair  with  the  air  of  one  who  was  badly 
bored  and  utterly  disgusted. 

"  How  do  you  like  it  as  far  as  you  have  gone  ?" 
asked  Marshall. 

"  I  don't  like  it  at  all,"  was  the  reply  ;  "and  it 
has  gone  about  as  far  as  it  will  with  me,  too.  If  the 
old  man  thinks  I  am  going  to  vegetate  down  here  for 
the  next  six  months,  he  is  badly  mistaken.  I  won't 
do  it  to  please  anybody." 

"  You  can't  help  yourself,"  said  his  brother. 

"  I  can't !  I'll  show  you  that  I  can.  I'll  write  a 
letter  to  mother  this  very  night,  and  tell  her  that  I 
want  money  enough  to  take  me  home." 

"0,  of  course  that  will  bring  it,"  said  Marshall, 
with  a  laugh  which  said  that  he  thought  it  would  not. 
"  You  know  what  father  said  the  last  thing  before 
we  left,  don't  you — that  we  need  not  write  for  money, 
because  we  couldn't  have  a  cent  ?" 

"  Yes,  I  know,  but  I'll  get  it,  all  the  same.  See 
there,"  said  Clarence,  exhibiting  almost  a  handful 
of  small  change. 

"  Where  did  you  get  that  ?"  demanded  his  brother. 

"  Mother  gave  it  to  me  just  before  we  left  home. 
She  said  that  I  might  want  some  spending  money, 
and  hinted  that  when  this  was  gone,  I  knew  where  I 


122  THE    BURIED   TREASURE. 

could  get  more.  I'll  ask  for  more  at  once ;  and  if 
it  doesn't  come,  I'll  drop  a  line  to  mother  telling  her 
that  if  she  wants  to  see  me  again,  she  had  better  be 
doing  something.  That  always  wakes  her  up  !" 

"It  has  had  the  desired  effect  so  far,  I  admit," 
said  Marshall.  "  But  suppose  father  should  get  hold 
of  one  of  those  threatening  letters,  and  should  write 
back  to  you  :  *  My  dear  Clarence  :  You  have  talked 
this  way  often  enough.  You  shan't  have  a  cent.' 
What  would  you  do  then  ?" 

"  Well,  in  the  first  place,  there  is  no  danger  that 
my  letters  will  ever  fall  into  his  hands,  for  mother 
takes  precious  good  care  to  put  them  in  the  grate  as 
soon  as  she  reads  them ;  and  in  the  next  place,  I'd 
make  the  old  man  repent  such  an  act  the  longest  day 
he  lived.  I'd  clear  out,  and  he'd  never  see  me 
again  !" 

"  0,  nonsense  !"  exclaimed  Marshall,  tucking  up 
his  sleeves  preparatory  to  plunging  his  hands  into  the 
wash-bowl.  "  You  are  not  the  one  to  cut  loose  from 
a  comfortable  home  and  go  out  into  the  world  to 
make  your  own  living,  as  long  as  you  can  avoid  it. 
You  like  your  ease  altogether  too  well  for  that.  Tell 
us  some  other  funny  story,  please." 

"  There  is  no  funny  story  about  this.     I  am  in 


THE   BURIED   TREASURE.          "*          123 

earnest,  and  you'll  see  if  I  don't  get  the  money  in 
less  than  two  weeks.  I  can't  live  down  here  in  this 
wilderness — no  billiards,  no  theatres,  no  nothing 
that's  interesting.  How  is  one  to  kill  time,  I  won- 
der ?" 

"  You  must  read,  and  hunt,  and  fish,  and  ride  on 
horseback,"  replied  Marshall,  in  a  tone  of  voice  that 
would  have  made  Bert  open  his  eyes  if  he  could  have 
heard  it.  "  That  is  the  way  our  worthy  cousins  put 
in  their  leisure  moments." 

"  They  must  find  it  highly  entertaining.  I  should 
expect  it  of  them.  Did  you  ever  see  two  such  coun- 
try bumpkins  ?  Wouldn't  they  cut  a  pretty  figure 
in  the  city  ?  Why,  when  we  were  introduced  to 
them  they  were  as  dumb  as  clams." 

"  Yes  ;  but  you'd  better  take  advice  now  for  once 
in  your  life,  and  be  very  careful  of  your  language 
and  your  behavior  when  you  are  in  the  presence  of 
those  same  country  bumpkins.  That  Don  is  pretty 
broad-shouldered,  and  I  notice  he's  got  a  grip  like  a 
young  blacksmith.  I  found  that  out  when  I  shook 
hands  with  him.  If  you  are  as  tyrannical  and  over- 
bearing with  him  as  you  are  with  me  sometimes,  you 
may  get  yourself  into  business." 

Just  then  the  ringing  of  a  bell  in  the  hall  brought 


124  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

Clarence  to  his  feet.  "  What's  that  for,  I  wonder  ?" 
he  exclaimed. 

"Dinner,  most  likely." 

"  Dinner  at  twelve !"  said  Clarence,  glancing  at 
his  watch.  "  And  supper  at  six  and  bed  at  half-past 
eight,  I  suppose  !" 

"  Probably  ;  and  what  will  trouble  you  still  more, 
breakfast  at  six  every  morning,"  said  Marshall. 
"  You  can't  lie  in  bed  here  till  ten  or  eleven  o'clock 
and  then  have  breakfast  sent  up  to  you." 

Clarence  said  something  more  about  "  country 
bumpkins,"  repeated  the  resolution  he  had  so  sud- 
denly formed  that  his  sojourn  under  his  uncle's  roof 
should  be  a  very  short  one,  and  then  made  all  haste 
to  get  ready  for  dinner. 


THE   BURIED   TREASURE.  125 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

DAN    MAKES    A    DISCOVERY. 

HPHE  next  morning,  long  before  the  sun  showed 
himself  above  the  tree-tops,  the  Evans  family 
were  all  astir.  They  always  rose  at  an  early  hour, 
and  it  was  probably  more  from  the  force  of  habit  than 
for  any  other  reason,  for,  with  the  exception  of  Mrs. 
Evans,  none  of  them  did  any  work  until  after  they 
had  eaten  breakfast.  Even  the  chores  were  left  until 
the  male  members  of  the  family  had  broken  their 
fast,  for  Godfrey  declared  that  it  was  not  healthy, 
in  that  climate,  to  breathe  too  much  of  the  early 
morning  air,  it  was  so  laden  with  miasma  and  the  seeds 
of  fever  and  ague ;  but  he  did  not  seem  to  think  it  at 
all  injurious  if  inhaled  through  the  fumes  of  tobacco 
smoke,  and  while  seated  on  the  bench  beside  the  cabin 
door.  That  bench  served  Godfrey  in  lieu  of  an  easy- 
chair.  When  he  was  not  hunting  in  the  woods  or 
loafing  at  the  landing,  he  was  always  to  be  found 
there,  smoking  and  thinking. 


126  THE   BURIED  TREASURE. 

On  the  morning  of  this  particular  day,  Godfrey 
arose  from  his  "shake  down"  with  the  air  of  a  lord, 
and  astonished  two  members  of  his  family  and  alarmed 
another,  by  giving  them  all  a  hearty  greeting.  When 
he  had  dressed  himself  he  filled  his  pipe,  and  walking 
out  of  the  door  with  a  slow  and  dignified  step,  stood 
with  his  hands  on  his  hips,  looking  about  him  as  if  he 
were  monarch  of  all  he  surveyed.  Mrs.  Evans  said 
to  herself  that  that  was  the  way  he  used  to  act  in  the 
good  old  days;  while  Dan  communed  thus  with 
himself : 

"  If  me  an'  pop  had  been  out  a  diggin'  fur  that 
thar  bar'l  last  night,  an'  had  done  found  it,  I  should 
know  that  that  was  what  ails  him  this  mornin' ;  but 
geein'  we  didn't  dig  fur  the  bar'l,  I  don't  know  what's 
the  matter  of  him.  He  don't  walk  with  that  big 
leg,  an'  sling  on  all  them  extry  frills,  fur  nothin', 
an'  I'm  afeared  he's  smelled  out  somethin'.  If  he 
has " 

Dan  did  not  say  what  he  should  do,  but  he  shook 
his  head  in  the  most  threatening  manner,  and  hav- 
ing drawn  on  his  clothes,  clapped  his  hat  on  his  head, 
and  hurried  out  of  the  door.  His  father  looked  at 
him  as  he  disappeared  around  the  corner  of  the  cabin, 
but  made  no  sign  beyond  looking  in  at  the  door  to 


THE   BURIED   TREASURE.  127 

satisfy  himself  that  the  rawhide  was  hanging  in  its 
accustomed  place. 

In  a  few  minutes  Dan  returned  and  confronted  his 
sire.  His  face  wore  a  fierce  frown,  and  he  looked 
mad  enough  for  almost  anything.  He  began  opera- 
tions by  jumping  up  and  knocking  his  heels  together, 
coming  down  with  a  jar  and  with  his  feet  spread  out 
as  if  he  were  bracing  himself  for  a  shock  of  some 
kind.  This  is  an  indispensable  prelude  to  all  games 
of  fisticuffs  in  the  South  and  West.  No  backwoods 
pugilist  ever  thinks  of  going  into  a  fight  without 
thus  preparing  himself  for  it.  Sometimes  a  few 
Indian  yells,  given  with  all  the  power  of  the  lungs, 
help  matters  wonderfully.  Dan  went  through  the  per- 
formance just  to  show  his  father  how  angry  he 
was,  and  to  give  him  some  idea  of  the  damage  he 
would  do  if  he  only  possessed  the  power.  Godfrey 
looked  pleasantly  at  him,  and  seated  himself  on  the 
bench. 

"  Give  me  them  six  dollars  an'  six  bits,  dog-gone 
my  buttons,"  sputtered  Dan,  who  could  hardly  speak 
plainly  enough  to  be  understood.  Then  he  seemed 
to  regain  control  of  his  tongue,  and  without  giving 
his  father  a  chance  to  reply,  went  on:  "I  knowed 
yesterday  that  ye  was  up  to  something,"  said  he, 


128  THE    BURIED    TREASURE. 

"  an'  I  knowed  this  mornin'  when  I  first  seed  ye  a 
struttin'  about,  that  ye'd  been  an'  done  some  mean 
trick.  You've  been  a  pokin'  into  my  things.  You've 
got  my  money  an'  my  powder  an'  lead,  an'  I  want 
'em.  The  money's  mine,  an'  I " 

"  It's  your'n,  is  it  ?"  exclaimed  Godfrey.  "  Whar 
did  ye  get  it,  an'  how  come  ye  by  it?" 

"  Didn't  I  tell  ye  I  got  three  an'  a  half  fur  that 
hind  quarter  of  beef?" 

"  Yes,  but  whar  did  ye  get  the  rest?" 

"  Didn't  ye  tell  me  it  didn't  make  no  odds  to  ye 
whar  I  got  it  so  long  as  I  did  get  it?"  asked  Dan. 

"  That  was  yesterday,"  answered  Godfrey.  "It 
didn't  make  no  odds  to  me  yesterday,  but  it's  to-morrer 
now,  an'  it  makes  a  heap  of  odds.  It's  my  bouriden 
duty  to  find  out  whar  ye  got  it  an'  how  ye  came  by 
it,  kase  mebbe  it  wasn't  honest." 

"  Whoop  !"  yelled  Dan,  jumping  up  and  knocking 
his  heels  together  in  the  excess  of  his  rage.  "  Honest ! 
It's  a  heap  honester  nor  it  is  to  go  arter  dark  into  a 
man's  tater-patch  an'  dig  up  the  bar'l  o'  money  he's 
got  kivered  up  thar.  Now,  ole  man,  I'll  tell  ye 
what's  the  gospel  truth  about  that  thar  bar'l,"  added 
Dan,  a  bright  idea  striking  him.  "  If  ye'll  give 
my  money  back  to  me,  I  won't  say  nothing 


THE    BURIED    TREASURE,  129 

about  it;  but  if  ye  don't,  I'll  go  straight  to  the 
gen'ral " 

"  Whoop  !"  shouted  Godfrey,  in  his  turn. 

As  the  word  left  his  lips  he  jumped  up  from  the 
bench  and  made  a  furious  rush  toward  his  son,  but 
did  not  succeed  in  laying  hands  upon  him.  The 
place  where  Dan  was  standing  became  suddenly 
vacant,  and  a  moment  afterward  a  very  scared  face 
looked  at  Godfrey  between  the  rails  of  the  fence  that 
surrounded  the  cabin. 

"Yes,  I  will,"  repeated  Dan,  who  felt  compara- 
tively safe  now.  "  I'll  go  straight  to  the  gen'ral  an' 
tell  him  what  ye're  up  to,  an'  then  what'll  become 
of  yer  bar'l  with  the  eighty  thousand  into  it?" 

"  An'  what'll  become  of  yer  shiny  hats  an'  boots, 
an'  yer  circus  bosses,  an'  yer  guns  that  break  in  two 
in  the  middle?"  retorted  Godfrey,  as  soon  as  his 
rage  would  allow  him  to  speak. 

"I  don't  care,"  replied  Dan,  "I  want  my  six 
dollars  and  six  bits  fust ;  an'  if  I  don't  get  'em,  I'll 
knock  all  yer  'rangements  higher  nor  the  moon.  I 
will,  I  don't  care  if  I  don't  sleep  in  the  house  fur  a 
month  arter  it." 

"  Ye'll  never  sleep  in  my  house  again  if  ye  do 
that,"  said  Godfrey.  "  But,  Dannie,  thar  ain't  no 
9 


130  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

use  in  me  an'  you  fightin'  over  these  few  greenbacks, 
when  thar's  eighty  thousand  dollars  in  gold  and  silver 
to  be  had  fur  the  diggin'." 

"  I  don't  want  to  fight  nuther,  but  I  want  my 
money,"  said  Dan. 

"  Now,  Dannie,  be  a  good  boy  an'  let  yer  poor 
ole  pop  take  keer  on  it  fur  ye." 

"  No,  I  won't." 

"  Kase  I'm  the  oldest  an'  know  the  most,  ye  know, 
an'  it's  the  properest  thing  to  do." 

But  Dan  only  shook  his  head  decidedly,  and 
retreated  as  his  father  approached  the  fence.  God- 
frey continued  to  argue  the  matter,  but  he  could  make 
no  impression  upon  Dan,  whose  only  reply  was, 
"  Give  me  my  money ;"  and  his  father  was  finally 
forced  to  the  conclusion  that  he  must  either  do  it,  or 
have  all  his  hopes  of  possessing  that  bar'l  of  gold 
blasted.  He  was  well  enough  acquainted  with  Dan 
to  know  that  he  never  made  idle  threats,  and  he  saw 
that  he  must  compromise  in  some  way,  and  that  too, 
if  possible,  without  any  loss  to  his  dignity. 

"Now,  Dannie,"  said  he,  "I  hope  ye  see  that  yer 
pop  is  a  heap  smarter  nor  ye  be,  don't  yer  ?" 

"  Give  me  them  six  dollars  an'  six  bits,"  replied 
Dan. 


THE   BURIED   TREASURE.  131 

"No,  ye  can't  have  'em — bar'l  or  no  bar'l,  that's 
flat — till  ye  tell  me  whar  ye  got  'em.  I'm  yer  pop, 
an'  it's  my  bounden  duty  to  know  how  ye  come  by 
'em." 

Dan  hesitated.  If  he  complied  with  his  father's 
demand,  he  might  whistle  for  the  other  five  dollars 
which  Don  Gordon  still  owed  David — or,  rather, 
which  he  would  owe  him  as  soon  as  the  pointer  was 
field-broken.  If  he  refused  to  comply,  he  would  lose 
six  dollars  and  seventy-five  cents,  and  that  was  a 
small  fortune  to  him.  No  matter  what  he  decided 
to  do,  he  had  a  fine  prospect  of  losing  money,  unless — 

"Yes,  pop,"  he  replied  suddenly,  trying  hard  to 
conceal  the  excitement  occasioned  by  a  lucky  thought 
that  just  then  occurred  to  him,  "  I  know  yer  a  heap 
smarter  nor  I  be,  an'  I'll  be  a  good  son  to  ye,  an' 
never  try  to  fool  ye  no  more." 

"  That's  a  good  boy,  Dannie,"  said  his  father, 
thrusting  his  hand  through  the  fence  in  the  hope 
that  Dan  would  lay  his  own  within  it.  "  Put  it  thar, 
my  lad." 

Dan  came  a  step  nearer  to  the  fence,  but  his  actions 
indicated  that  he  had  no  desire  to  shake  hands  with 
his  father.  On  the  contrary,  he  kept  safely  out  of 
his  reach. 


132  THE   BURIED  TREASURE, 

"  No,  I'll  never  fool  ye  no  more,"  said  he,  "  honor 
bright.  An'  will  ye  promise,  honor  bright,  to  give 
me  the  money,  all  of  it,  when  I  tell  ye  whar  I  got 
it?" 

"In  course  I  will." 

"  Say  honor  bright." 

His  father  said  it,  placing  his  hand  in  his  pocket 
at  the  same  time  to  show  that  he  was  ready  to  keep 
his  word,  and  Dan  continued : 

"  Silas  Jones  give  it  to  me.  I  made  five  dollars 
outen  him  choppin'  wood." 

"  That's  the  way  to  get  rich,  my  boy,"  said  God- 
frey. "  Allers  do  sich  little  chores  when  ye  can  get 
'em  to  do,  an'  hold  fast  to  the  money,  an'  some  day 
ye'll  be  wuth  yer  thousands." 

"Now  hand  it  out  here,"  said  Dan. 

"  Yes,  I'll  hand  it  out,  but  not  now.  I  must  fust 
ax  Silas  about  it.  I'll  have  business  down  to  the 
landin'  some  time  to-day,  I  reckon,  an'  arter  I  ax 
Silas,  I'll  give  ye  the  money." 

"  He  owes  me  ten  dollars  more,"  cried  Dan,  greatly 
alarmed,  and  hoping  that  his  father  would  catch  at 
the  bait  thus  thrown  out. 

"  I'm  glad  to  hear  it,"  was  the  reply.  "  Yer  rich 
already,  Dannie,  and  won't  need  none  of  the  bar'l 


THE   BURIED  TREASURE.  133 

when  we  find  it.  But  if  he  give  je  five  dollars  an' 
owes  ye  ten  more,  ye  must  a  made — "  here  Godfrey 
stopped  and  counted  his  fingers — "  ye  must  a  made 
fifteen  outen  him  choppin'  wood.  Didn't  ye  promise 
ye  wouldn't  never  try  to  fool  me  no  more  ?" 

"Wai,  come  nigher  to  the  fence,"  said  Dan, 
growing  desperate  and  sinking  his  voice  almost  to  a 
whisper,  so  that  those  in  the  cabin  might  not  hear 
his  words,  "  an'  I'll  tell  ye  this  time,  honor  bright. 
Ye  know  the  ten  dollars  Dave  was  goin'  to  get  fur 
breakin'  that  pinter  pup,  don't  ye  ?  Wai,  I  jest 
slipped  up  thar  an'  axed  Mr.  Bert  would  he  lend 
Dave  five  of  it  now  to  get  mam  a  new  dress  with,  an' 
he  said  yes,  he  would.  That's  whar  the  money  came 
from,  pop,  sure's  you  live." 

Godfrey  was  satisfied  of  it ;  and  while  he  secretly 
admired  the  boy's  shrewdness,  he  reproached  himself 
for  not  being  smart  enough  to  take  advantage  of  the 
opening,  and  thus  securing  the  ten  dollars  for  his 
own  use.  Without  a  word  more  he  pulled  out  Dan's 
money  and  gave  it  to  him,  then  walked  back  to  the 
bench,  picked  up  his  pipe,  and  went  off  into  a  brown 
study.  He  never  came  out  of  it  until  he  was  called 
to  breakfast,  and  even  then  he  hardly  aroused  him- 
self sufficiently  to  know  what  was  going  on  around 


134  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

him.  Having  satisfied  his  appetite,  he  took  down 
his  rifle  and  left  the  cabin.  As  soon  as  he  was  out 
of  sight,  Dan  arose,  put  on  his  hunting  equipments 
and  also  disappeared,  leaving  David  and  his  mother 
to  themselves. 

Godfrey  made  his  way  toward  General  Gordon's 
house,  and  on  the  way  stopped  at  the  barn,  where  the 
hostler  was  at  work  hitching  the  grays  to  the  family 
carriage.  By  a  little  skilful  questioning  he  learned 
that  the  general  and  his  boys  were  going  down  to 
the  landing  to  meet  some  visitors,  who  were  coming 
from  Cincinnati  on  the  Emma  Deane ;  and  this  piece 
of  information  caused  a  slight  change  in  the  pro- 
gramme he  had  laid  out  before  leaving  home.  He 
had  come  over  there  on  purpose  to  see  Don  Gordon, 
and  secure  the  balance  of  the  money  he  had  promised 
David  for  breaking  the  pointer.  But  he  wanted  to 
see  him  privately,  and  believing  that  his  object  could 
be  better  attained  by  waiting  a  while,  he  decided  to 
postpone  the  interview  until  the  Gordons  reached  the 
landing.  The  sooner  he  obtained  possession  of  the 
money  the  better,  Godfrey  told  himself,  as  he  looked 
out  of  one  of  the  stable  windows.  There  was  Dan 
coming  up  the  road,  and  his  father  knew  instinctively 
what  it  was  that  brought  him  in  that  direction  so 


THE   BURIED   TREASURE.  135 

early  in  the  morning.  Dan,  however,  did  not  go 
near  the  barn,  for  he  had  seen  his  father  stop  there, 
lie  kept  on  toward  the  landing,  and  when  he  was 
out  of  sight,  Godfrey  shouldered  his  rifle  and  followed 
him. 

We  have  already  seen  how  Godfrey  operated  when 
he  thought  the  proper  time  had  arrived.  Watching 
his  opportunity  he  secured  an  interview  with  Don 
Gordon  before  Dan  did,  and  had  no  trouble  at  all  in 
inducing  him  to  hand  over  five  dollars  of  David's 
money  to  him.  Godfrey  was  in  ecstacies.  He  shut 
his  fingers  tight  about  the  bill  and  hurried  away  as 
if  he  feared  that  Don  might  repent  and  want  the 
money  back  after  he  had  time  to  think  about  what 
he  had  done.  Before  he  had  made  half  a  dozen  steps 
he  was  confronted  by  his  son  Dan,  whose  face  wore 
an  expression  that  Godfrey  did  not  like  to  see  there. 
He  knew  as  well  what  was  passing  in  the  boy's  mind 
as  he  did  five  minutes  afterward  when  Dan  told  him 
of  a  determination  he  had  formed. 

"Why,  hallo,  Dannie  !"  exclaimed  Godfrey,  as  if 
the  meeting  was  most  unexpected.  "  What  brung 
ye  down  here  so  'arly  ?  I've  got  that  other  five 
dollars  fur  ye." 

"  0,  ye  have,  have  ye  ?"  said  Dan. 


136  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

"  Yes.  Ye  see,  I  thought  mebbe  ye  wouldn't  like 
to  ax  fur  this  one,  seein'  as  how  ye  axed  fur  the  fust, 
so  I  done  tuk  the  trouble  to  do  it  myself.  Now, 
Dannie,  I'll  borrer  half  of  it  from  ye,  an'  pay  ye 
back  when  we  find  that  bar'l — to-night  mebbe !" 

Dan  drew  a  long  breath  of  relief.  This  was  a  piece 
of  generosity  he  had  not  looked  for,  and  he  hastened 
to  assure  his  father  that  he  was  entirely  satisfied  with 
the  proposition,  adding : 

"  Do  ye  know  what  I'd  a  done  if  ye'd  cheated  me 
outen  them  five  dollars  ?  Wai,  I'd  a  went  straight 
to  the  gen'ral  an'  told  him  about  that  thar  bar'l — 
yes,  I  would !" 

This  was  just  what  Godfrey  was  afraid  of,  and  the 
only  thing  that  led  him  to  divide  his  ill-gotten  gains 
with  Dan.  There  was  a  dangerous  light  in  his  eyes, 
but  controlling  himself  he  answered,  very  good- 
naturedly  : 

"  Wai,  ye  see  I  didn't  mean  to  cheat  ye,  don't  ye  ? 
Now  go  an'  git  the  bill  broke  over  to  Silas  Jones'. 
I'd  go  myself,  but  if  I  do,  he'll  want  me  to  pay  what 
I  owe  him,  an*  I  ain't  ready  to  do  that  yet.  He  can 
wait  till  we  find  that  bar'l." 

Dan  took  the  bill  and  went  away,  revolving  in  Jiis 
mind  a  dozen  wild  schemes  for  securing  undisputed 


THE   BURIED   TREASURE.  13T 

possession  of  the  whole  of  it.  Godfrey  watched  him 
until  he  disappeared  in  the  store,  and  then  leaned 
on  his  rifle  and  went  off  into  another  brown  study. 

"  The  ongrateful  an'  ondutiful  scamp !"  thought 
he.  "  He's  got  the  upper  hand  agin  me,  that  boy 
has,  an'  I've  got  to  give  him  half  them  five  dollars, 
or  have  my  plans  busted.  I  wish  now  I  hadn't  told 
him  about  that  bar'I.  I'd  go  an*  dig  fur  it  myself 
o'nights,  only  its  kinder  lonesome  bein'  all  by  myself 
in  the  dark.  Folks  do  say  that  all  sort  of  critters 
an'  strange  things  is  abroad  arter  night,  an*  as  I've 
seed  'em  an'  felt  'em  myself,  I'm  jest  a  trifle " 

Godfrey  finished  the  sentence  by  shrugging  his 
shoulders.  He  would  not  have  acknowledged,  even 
to  himself,  that  he  was  afraid,  but  that  was  the  plain 
English  of  it.  He  would  hardly  go  to  the  wood-pile 
alone  after  dark.  It  was  true  that  he  had  seen  some 
strange  things  which  he  could  not  account  for,  and 
which  frightened  him  almost  out  of  his  wits.  He 
had  seen  figures  flitting  along  the  road  in  front 
of  him  when  he  returned  home  from  the  landing  after 
dark,  and  on  two  or  three  occasions,  something  with 
great  eyes  of  fire  had  glared  at  him  from  a  fence  cor- 
ner behind  the  general's  barn,  and  compelled  him  to 
leave  the  road  and  go  around  through  the  fields  to 


138  THE    BURIED   TREASURE. 

reach  his  house.  On  other  occasions  he  had  been 
suddenly  and  mysteriously  tripped  up  when  there 
was  not  a  human  being  within  sight  of  him,  and  his 
hat  had  been  dashed  from  his  head  by  invisible 
hands. 

All  these  things,  however,  could  have  been  satis- 
factorily explained,  if  Godfrey  had  only  possessed  the 
courage  to  inquire  into  them.  If  he  had  caught  one 
of  the  figures  which  ran  along  the  road  before  him 
and  disappeared  in  so  bewildering  a  fashion,  he  would 
have  found  that  it  was  not  a  spirit,  but  a  human 
being — a  night  prowler  who  had  designs  upon  the 
general's  smoke-house.  If  he  had  walked  up  to  the 
eyes  of  fire  that  glared  so  savagely  at  him,  he  would 
have  discovered  that  they  were  simply  holes  in  a 
pumpkin,  which  had  been  scooped  out  to  admit  a 
lighted  candle,  and  he  would  have  seen  Don  Gordon 
lying  on  the  ground  at  a  little  distance  convulsed 
with  laughter.  The  invisible  hands  which  knocked 
off  his  hat  and  pulled  his  feet  out  from  under  him  so 
unexpectedly,  would,  upon  investigation,  have  proved 
to  be  strong  cords  stretched  from  one  side  of  the  lane 
to  the  other,  managed  by  the  same  spirit  of  mischief 
who  had  placed  the  lighted  candle  in  the  hollow 
pumpkin,  and  who  had  out  them  there  for  the  pur- 


THE   BURIED    TREASURE.  139 

pose  of  entertaining  himself  at  the  expense  of  a  crowd 
of  darkies,  who  were  expected  to  pass  along  the  lane 
on  their  way  home  from  protracted  meeting. 

All  these  things  happened  during  the  previous 
autumn,  but  Godfrey  had  not  forgotten  them.  Don 
had  then  just  returned  from  school ;  and  the  life  he 
led  on  his  father's  plantation  was  so  monotonous, 
that  he  sometimes  thought  he  could  not  exist  much 
longer  unless  something  happened  to  cheer  him  up  a 
little.  As  nothing  happened  of  its  own  accord,  Don 
went  to  work  to  create  opportunities  to  let  off  some 
of  his  surplus  energy  in  a  good  hearty  laugh  ;  and 
to  further  this  end,  he  made  use  of  some  of  the  nu- 
merous schoolboy  devices  he  learned  while  at  the 
academy.  You  will  know  how  well  he  succeeded 
when  we  tell  you  that  in  less  than  a  week  after  he  began 
operations,  the  story  got  abroad  that  the  general's 
lane  was  haunted,  and  there  was  not  a  negro  in  the 
neighborhood  who  could  be  hired  to  pass  through 
there  after  dark.  Godfrey  Evans  himself  would  not 
do  it.  He  always  took  to  the  fields. 

We  do  not  say  that  Don  passed  his  leisure  hours 
in  the  most  profitable  manner,  for  we  know  he  did 
not.  We  are  only  telling  the  story  of  his  life,  and 
telling  it  as  it  happened  not  so  very  long  ago.  That 


140  THE    BURIED   TREASURE. 

Don  himself  knew  that  he  might  be  better  employed, 
was  proved  bj  the  fact  that  he  did  all  this  alone,  not 
even  taking  Bert  into  his  confidence.  He  little 
thought  then  that  his  love  of  mischief  would  one  day 
be  the  means  of  getting  him  into  a  scrape  the  like 
of  which  he  had  never  dreamed  of,  but  such  was  the 
fact ;  and  we  must  hasten  on  to  tell  how  it  was  brought 
about. 


THE   BURIED  TREASURE.  141 


CHAPTER  IX. 
OLD  JORDAN'S  "HAUNT." 

TPv  AN  came  back  to  his  father  with  the  money  sim- 
~^"^  ply  because  he  could  think  of  no  way  of  avoid- 
ing it  that  did  not  involve  more  personal  risk  than 
he  cared  to  encounter.  He  took  pains,  however,  to 
keep  out  his  share,  and  gave  Godfrey  only  two  dol- . 
lars  and  a  half,  accompanying  it  with  the  assurance 
that  in  his  (Dan's)  estimation,  his  father  had  been 
guilty  of  a  very  mean  trick,  and  one  that  he  ought 
to  be  heartily  ashamed  of. 

"  Didn't  ye  tell  me  ye  was  satisfied  ?"  asked  God- 
frey. 

"  I  know  it,  but  I  told  ye  so  kase  I  was  afeared 
if  I  said  I  wasn't,  I  wouldn't  get  none  of  the  money. 
0,  I  know  ye,  pop;  an'  I  don't  see  why  ye  can't  go 
to  work  an'  make  some  money  of  yer  own,  'stead  of 
ropin'  in  on  me  an'  spilin'  my  plans.  If  ye'd  a  kept 
outen  the  way,  I'd  a  had  ten  dollars  as  easy  as  fall- 
in'  off  a  log." 


142  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

Godfrey  was  too  much  interested  in  his  own 
thoughts  to  carry  the  discussion  any  farther.  He 
breathed  easier  when  he  felt  the  money  in  his  fingers, 
and  because  he  had  no  pocket  that  would  hold  it,  he 
kept  it  in  his  hand,  and  stood  around  with  the  rest 
of  the  hangers-on,  and  saw  the  Emma  Deane  come 
up  to  the  landing  and  deposit  the  passengers  and 
cargo  she  had  brought.  Like  the  rest  he  wondered 
who  the  fashionably -dressed  young  gentlemen  were 
who  got  into  the  general's  carriage  and  rode  off  with 
him  ;  and  he  would  have  wondered  still  more  had  he 
been  able  to  look  far  enough  into  the  future  to  see 
that  he,  the  ragged,  worthless  Godfrey  Evans,  would 
one  day  be  the  trusted  companion  of  one  of  those 
spruce  young  fellows,  and  that  he  would  be  intimately 
connected  with  him  in  a  certain  piece  of  business 
which,  when  it  became  known,  would  set  all  the 
tongues  in  the  country  for  miles  around  in  motion. 

The  general  and  his  nephews  drove  off ;  the  Emma 
Deane,  as  soon  as  her  freight  and  passengers  were 
landed,  backed  out  into  the  stream  and  once  more 
turned  her  head  toward  New  Orleans ;  the  people 
who  had  been  brought  to  the  landing  by  the  sound 
of  her  whistle  spent  a  few  minutes  in  exchanging 
notes,  and  then  began  to  disperse ;  and  finally  the 


THE    BURIED   TREASURE.  143 

street  was  entirely  deserted  except  by  a  few  of  the 
most  persistent  loafers,  who  sat  on  the  boxes  in  front 
of  Silas  Jones's  store,  and  whittled  and  chewed  to- 
bacco for  want  of  a  better  way  of  passing  the  time. 
Among  these  was  Godfrey,  who  sunned  himself  for 
an  hour  or  two  like  a  turtle  on  his  log,  and  then,  with 
a  deep  sigh  of  regret,  shouldered  his  rifle  and  bent 
his  steps  toward  the  woods  in  which  his  hopeful  son 
Dan  had  long  ago  disappeared. 

When  the  afternoon  began  to  draw  to  a  close, 
nearly  the  same  scenes  which  we  have  already  de- 
scribed were  enacted  at  Godfrey's  humble  abode.  The 
scattered  family  began  to  come  in,  one  after  the  other, 
and  they  found  Godfrey  sitting  on  the  bench  smok- 
ing his  pipe.  Dan  had  a  bunch  of  squirrels  and  a 
fine  wild  turkey  thrown  over  his  shoulder ;  David 
brought  another  dozen  of  quails  which  Don  Gordon's 
pointer  had  stood  for  him ;  and  Mrs.  Evans  carried 
in  her  pocket  a  dollar  which  she  had  earned  with 
her  needle  that  day.  Fortunately  Godfrey  did  not 
know  of  that.  If  he  had  he  would  at  once  have  set 
his  wits  at  work  to  conjure  up  some  plan  to  obtain 
possession  of  it.  David  was  again  called  upon  to 
chop  the  wood,  for  Dan  had  disappeared  immediately 
after  skinning  the  squirrels  he  brought  (he  had  gone 


144  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

off  to  hunt  up  another  hiding-place  for  his  valuables), 
and  Godfrey  was  so  wearied  with  his  hard  day's 
work  that  he  could  not  have  lifted  an  axe  if  he  had 
tried.  So  David  cut  the  wood  and  kindled  the  fire, 
and  his  mother  cooked  the  supper,  and  Godfrey  ate 
two  men's  share  of  it,  and  then  once  more  seated 
himself  on  the  bench  and  dozed  until  dark.  He 
slept  two  hours  or  more,  and  was  aroused  by  Dan, 
who  wanted  to  know  if  he  was  going  to  make  an 
effort  to  find  the  barrel  that  night.  Godfrey  replied 
that  he  was,  and  started  up  with  much  alacrity  ;  but 
his  enthusiasm  seemed  to  die  away  utterly  when  he 
rubbed  his  eyes  and  looked  about  him.  He  could 
see  literally  nothing.  It  was  as  dark  as  it  ever  gets 
to  be.  The  cabin  and  the  clearing  seemed  to  be  sur- 
rounded by  solid  walls  of  ebony.  There  was  not  a 
ray  of  light  to  be  seen  in  any  direction,  nor  even  a 
star. 

"  Splendid  night,"  said  Dan.  "  Nothing  can't 
see  us !" 

"Yes,"  answered  his  father,  "an'  we  can't  see 
nothing,  too !" 

"  Wai,  I  reckon  ye  know  whar  that  tater-patch 
was,  don't  ye  ?  Ye  said  ye  did." 

"  Yes,  I  do;  but  thar  was  ten  acres  into  it,  Dannie, 


THE    BURIED    TREASURE.  145 

an'  that's  a  power  of  ground  to  dig  over  with  one 
shovel." 

"But  jest  think  of  the  eighty  thousand,"  said 
Dan. 

That  was  just  what  Godfrey  did  think  of,  and  it 
was  the  only  thing  that  could  have  induced  him  to 
brave  the  darkness  and  the  terrors  of  the  general's 
lane,  and  undertake  so  herculean  a  task  as  diggin^ 

oo       O 

up  ten  acres  of  ground  with  one  shovel.  Was  there 
not  some  way  in  which  he  could  secure  the  contents 
of  the  barrel,  or  at  least  a  portion  of  them,  without 
the  expenditure  of  any  great  amount  of  energy  and 
strength  ? 

"Dannie,"  said  he,  laying  his  hand  on  the  boy's 
shoulder  and  speaking  in  a  low,  confidential  tone, 
"  I've  been  thinkin'  about  something  to-day,  an' 
when  ye  know  what  it  is,  I  want  ye  to  tell  me  if  I 
ain't  the  best  pop  in  the  world  to  ye.  I'm  gettin' 
old,  Dannie,  an'  my  joints  is  stiff,  an'  the  rheumatiz 
bothers  me  fearful,  an'  'tain't  healthy  to  be  out  arter 
dark,  kase  of  the  fever  'n  ager — leastwise  fur  an  ole 
man  like  me ;  but  fur  an'  amazin'  strong,  strappin' 
feller  like  yerself,  it  don't  make  no  matter.  Now, 
Dannie,  if  ye'll  go  an'  dig  up  that  thar  bar'l  by  yer- 
10 


146  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

self,  I'll  give  ye  half  of  it,  plump  down,  jest  as  soon 
as  we  open  it — the  very  minute." 

"  Wai,  I  won't  do  it,"  said  Dan,  promptly. 

"  What  fur  ?"  asked  his  father. 

"  Kase  why,  fur  two  reasons :  If  I  dig  up  that 
thar  bar'l  all  by  myself,  I'll  jest  hold  fast  to  the  hul 
of  it,  an'  go  snacks  with  nobody." 

"  Hadn't  ye  oughter  give  me  something  fur  tellin' 
ye  about  it?"  inquired  his  father. 

As  Dan  could  not  answer  this  question  in  any 
other  way  than  by  a  reply  in  the  affirmative,  he  did 
not  answer  it  all,  but  went  on  to  state  his  second 
reason. 

"An'  in  the  next  place,"  said  he,  "I  don't  know 
whar  the  tater- patch  was — thar's  something  else 
planted  there  now,  I  reckon — an'  if  I  did,  ye  wouldn't 
ketch  me  out  thar  alone  on  sich  a  night  as  this,  I'll 
bet  ye.  Thar's  something  white  walks  around  out 
thar !" 

"  Don't — don't,  Dannie  !"  exclaimed  Godfrey, 
casting  frightened  glances  on  all  sides  of  him. 

"  Wai,  ye  know  it  as  well  as  me,  don't  ye  ?  I'll 
go  with  ye  an'  do  my  share  of  the  diggin',  but  I 
won't  go  alone — that's  flat !" 

Godfrey  groaned,  and  for  a  moment  was  on  the 


THE   BURIED    TREASURE.  147 

point  of  backing  squarely  out,  and  saying  that  he 
didn't  believe  that  the  barrel  was  there ;  and  if  it 
was  it  might  stay  there  for  all  he  would  do  toward 
digging  it  up.  But  he  did  not  back  out.  He  had 
the  best  of  reasons  for  believing  that  the  barrel  was 
there,  and  that  it  was  full  of  gold  and  silver.  A 
little  extra  exertion  might  put  him  in  possession  of 
it.  Perhaps  with  the  very  first  blow  of  the  shovel 
he  might  strike  the  treasure,  and  then  his  troubles 
would  all  be  over.  The  visions  of  ease  and  happiness 
which  this  thought  conjured  up,  gave  zeal  to  his 
flagging  spirits  and  courage  to  his  heart ;  and  picking 
up  his  hat,  which  had  fallen  from  his  head  while  he 
was  dozing  on  the  bench,  he  told  Dan  to  lead  on, 
and  they  would  find  that  barrel  if  all  the  white  things 
in  the  country  should  come  there  to  scare  them  away. 

Together  they  moved  off  in  the  darkness,  and 
made  their  way  to  the  lane  behind  the  general's  barn, 
where  Dan  had  hidden  the  spade  in  the  fence  corner. 

It  was  the  work  of  but  a  few  seconds  to  find  the 
implement,  and  then  the  father  and  son  climbed  the 
fence  and  struck  off  across  the  fields  toward  the  potato- 
patch  where  the  barrel  was  buried.  When  they 
reached  it  they  found  that  the  field  was  still  planted 
to  potatoes,  and  Dan  noticed,  with  no  little  uneasiness, 


148  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

that  it  was  closer  to  the  house  than  he  would  like  to 
have  had  it.  The  noise  of  the  spade  striking  against 
the  barrel — when  they  found  it — or  a  word  uttered 
in  too  loud  a  tone  of  voice,  would  arouse  Don  Gor- 
don's hounds,  and  they  would  alarm  the  family,  the 
members  of  which  they  could  see  passing  back  and 
forth  before  the  windows  through  which  the  lights 
shone. 

"  Say,  pop,"  said  Dan,  suddenly ;  "  won't  they 
see  the  holes  in  the  mornin'  ?  An'  if  they  keep 
on  findin'  'em,  won't  they  think  thar's  somethin'  up, 
an'  watch  to  see  who  it  is  that's  a  diggin'  'em  ?" 

"  No,  they  won't,  kase  they  won't  see  'em,"  replied 
his  father.  "We'll  dig  down  till  we  find  thar  ain't 
no  bar'l  thar,  an'  then  we'll  shove  the  dirt  back  again, 
an'  dig  in  some  other  place." 

"  How  deep'll  we  have  to  go  ?" 

"  0,  not  much  more'n  the  deepness  of  a  bar'l,  kase 
why,  ye  see  Jordan  wouldn't  have  no  time  to  dig  a 
deep  hole  to  kiver  up  the  bar'l  in,  when  he  knowed 
that  the  Yanks  was  a  comin'.  He  done  a  good  thing 
fur  us,  Jordan  did,  in  runnin'  away  without  tellin' 
his  missus  whar  that  bar'l  was  hid.  Now,  Dannie, 
let's  try  right  here  fust.  Ye  begin,  kase  yer  the 
youngest,  an'  I'll  set  down  an'  smoke  an'  watch  ye 


THE    BURIED   TREASURE.  149 

till  yer  tired.  Now  bar  in  mind  that  yer  workin'  fur 
eighty  thousand  dollars  !  Throw  it  out  with  the 
fust  shovelful  an'  I'll  give  ye  half!" 

One  to  have  watched  Dan's  movements  would  have 
thought  that  he  meant  to  accomplish  something.  He 
peeled  off  his  coat  and  threw  it  on  the  ground,  dashed 
his  hat  down  beside  it,  tucked  up  his  sleeves,  moist- 
ened his  hands  and  brought  them  together  with  a 
loud  slap,  seized  the  shovel  and  thrust  it  twice  into  the 
ground,  bringing  out  each  time  scarcely  more  than  a 
good-sized  handful  of  earth,  and  then  stopped  and 
looked  all  around  the  field  as  far  as  his  eyes  could 
reach  in  the  darkness. 

"  Ten  acres  is  a  heap  o'  ground,  pop,"  said  he. 

"Never  mind  that,  Dannie,"  replied  his  father, 
scratching  a  match  on  his  shirt  sleeve  and  applying 
it  to  the  bowl  of  his  pipe.  "  Thar's  a  bar'l  with 
eighty  thousand  dollars  in  gold  an'  silver  into  it 
buried  somewhar  about  here,  an'  we  must  have  it  if 
we  have  to  dig  up  the  whole  state  of  Missip.  Laws 
a  massy  !  what's  the  matter  of  ye  ?"  he  exclaimed ; 
for  Dan  had  stooped  down  and  seized  his  arm  with 
a  gripe  that  almost  brought  from  him  a  cry  of  pain. 

Dan  stooped  still  lower,  pointed  with  his  finger 
and  said  in  a  husky  whisper, 


150  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

"  Pop,  jest  look  a  thar  !" 

The  tone  in  which  these  words  were  uttered  sent 
the  cold  chills  all  over  Godfrey.  His  breath  came 
in  short,  quick  gasps,  his  knees  knocked  together, 
and  he  slowly  and  painfully  arose  from  the  ground, 
turning  his  head  as  he  did  so,  and  looking  in  the 
direction  Dan  pointed.  There,  almost  within  reach 
of  them,  so  close  apparently  that  he  could  have  touched 
it  with  the  shovel,  if  he  had  been  so  disposed,  was  a 
little  ball  of  fire  which  glowed  and  sparkled  as  he 
looked  at  it,  then  faded  almost  entirely  away  for  an 
instant,  and  anon  glowed  and  sparkled  with  greater 
brilliancy  than  before.  Godfrey's  under  jaw  dropped 
down,  his  pipe  fell  to  the  ground  and  for  a  moment  he 
gazed  as  if  fascinated ;  then  he  reached  for  the  shovel, 
and  with  long,  noiseless  steps  glided  across  the  field 
toward  the  lane,  closely  followed  by  Dan,  who  hardly 
dared  to  wait  long  enough  to  pick  up  his  coat  and 
hat,  so  frightened  was  he.  Neither  of  them  spoke 
until  they  were  fairly  in  the  "  big  road"  which  led 
to  the  cabin,  and  then  Dan  said,  in  a  suppressed 
whisper : 

"  What  was  it,  pop  ?" 

"  It's  one  of  them  haunts  with  eyes  of  fire  like  I 
used  to  see  last  fall,"  replied  his  father,  looking  back 


THE    BURIED  TREASURE.  151 

to  make  sure  that  the  object,  whatever  it  was,  was 
not  following  him. 

"  But  this  only  had  one  eye,  pop  !" 

"  No  odds.  They  all  b'long  to  the  same  breed, 
whether  they've  got  one  eye  or  a  dozen.  Ole  nigger 
Hudson  told  me  he  seed  one  onct  that  was  all  eyes 
all  over  his  head.  Dannie,  that  was  the  fust  time  I 
ever  was  clost  enough  to  one  of  them  critters  to  see 
him  wink  !" 

"  Say,  pop,"  exclaimed  Dan,  suddenly,  "I  reckon 
we'd  best  give  up  lookin'  fur  that  thar  bar'l,  kase 
mebbe  that's  ole  Jordan's  haunt  come  back  to  keep 
folks  away  from  it." 

Godfrey  stopped  and  looked  at  his  son. 

"  I'll  bet  ye've  hit  centre,  Dannie,"  said  he,  after 
thinking  a  moment.  "  But  if  that's  so,  we  was  clost 
to  whar  the  bar'l  is,  or  else  the  haunt  wouldn't  a  been 
thar.  It'll  save  us  a  heap  o'  diggin',  Dannie  !" 

"  I'll  bet  ye  don't  get  me  nigh  that  tater  patch  no 
more,"  said  Dan,  decidedly. 

"  All  right.  I'll  go  myself,  an'  ye  shan't  have 
none  of  the  money.  Then  what'll  become  of  yer 
shiny  boots  an'  yer  circus  bosses,  and  yer  fine  guns 
that  break  in  two  in  the  middle?" 

Dan  made  no  answer.     He  did  not  like  to  lose  all 


152  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

these  nice  things  on  which  he  had  set  his  heart,  but 
there  was  old  Jordan's  "  haunt"  (that  is  a  term  which 
some  people  in  the  South  apply  to  what  we  call  a 
ghost),  of  which  he  stood  in  great  fear.  He  could 
not  then  make  up  his  mind  just  what  he  would  do  in 
the  future,  so  he  said  nothing  more,  and  neither  did 
his  father.  They  finished  their  walk  in  silence,  and 
reaching  the  cabin,  went  to  bed  and  tried  to  go  to 
sleep.  But  that  was  for  a  long  time  quite  impossi- 
ble. The  remembrance  of  their  evening's  experience 
kept  them  awake,  and  it  was  not  until  the  gray 
streaks  of  dawn  began  to  stream  in  through  the 
cracks  in  the  cabin  walls,  that  they  fell  into  an  un- 
easy slumber.  They  arose  at  the  usual  hour,  how- 
ever, and  David  chopped  wood  while  his  mother 
cooked  breakfast,  and  Dan  loafed  and  Godfrey  sat 
on  the  bench  and  smoked  and  meditated. 

The  meal  over,  Dan  shouldered  his  rifle  and  dis- 
appeared, and  Godfrey,  because  he  could  not  make 
up  his  mind  to  do  anything  else,  resumed  his  pipe 
and  his  meditations,  from  which  he  was  aroused  by 
the  sight  of  a  stranger  coming  along  the  road  from 
the  direction  of  General  Gordon's.  Godfrey  looked 
closely  at  him,  and  saw  that  he  was  one  of  the  two 
young  men  whom  he  had  seen  land  from  the  steamer 


THE    BURIED   TREASURE.  153 

Emma  Deane  on  the  previous  day.  He  carried  a 
gun  of  some  description  in  his  hands,  a  game-bag 
hung  over  his  shoulder,  and  he  was  dressed  in  a  hunt- 
ing suit  of  the  latest  and  most  fashionable  cut.  He 
walked  leisurely  along,  stopping  now  and  then  and 
looking  about  as  if  he  were  searching  for  some  object 
to  try  his  skill  upon. 

"  Humph  !"  sneered  Godfrey,  who  at  once  took  a 
dislike  to  the  hunter  on  account  of  his  good  clothes. 
"  Yer  a  nice  lookin'  chap  to  be  loafin'  about  with  a 
gun  in  yer  hands.  I'll  take  my  ole  Betsey  Jane 
an'  beat  the  hind  sights  offn  a  hul  army  of  yer. 
That's  jest  what  makes  me  so  savage  agin  everybody. 
What  this  feller's  clothes  cost  would  keep  me  an' 
my  family  in  grub  all  the  winter !" 

While  Godfrey  was  talking  thus  to  himself,  the 
stranger  stopped  again,  raised  his  gun  quickly  to 
his  shoulder  and  fired,  the  weapon  making  a  report 
scarcely  louder  than  that  of  an  ordinary  gun  cap. 
Godfrey  sneered  again,  and  was  about  to  give  it  as 
his  private  opinion  that  such  a  load  as  that  would 
not  kill  anything,  when  he  was  surprised  to  see  a 
squirrel  leave  the  very  topmost  branch  of  a  tall 
hickory  that  stood  by  the  roadside,  and  come  to  the 
ground  dead.  The  hunter  loaded  his  weapon  before 


154  THE    BURIED   TREASURE. 

he  went  to  pick  up  his  game,  and  Godfrey  saw  that 
he  carried  a  breech-loader.  He  became  interested 
at  once,  and  began  to  have  some  respect  for  the 
stranger  who  had  shown  himself  to  be  no  mean 
marksman.  He  arose  and  took  his  pipe  out  of  his 
mouth. 

"  How  do  ?"  said  he,  as  he  went  to  meet  the  hunter. 
"  I  'lowed  that  ye  wouldn't  get  nothing  that  shot,  no 
how.  Ye  wouldn't  take  no  offence  if  I  should  ax 
ye  to  let  me  see  that  we'pon  o'  your'n?" 

"  Certainly  not,"  said  the  stranger  politely,  re- 
moving the  cartridge  and  handing  the  rifle  to  God- 
frey. "  You  do  not  often  see  guns  of  this  description 
down  here,  I  suppose?" 

"  I  never  seed  one  jest  like  this  afore.  I  reckon 
yer  from  some  city  up  North,  ain't  ye?" 

"  Yes ;  I  am  Clarence  Gordon,  and  my  brother 
and  I  are  down  here  on  a  visit  to  our  cousins,  Don 
and  Bert.  You  are  Mr.  Evans,  I  believe." 

"  Sarvent,  sar,"  said  Godfrey,  who  could  not 
remember  that  any  one  had  ever  put  a  handle  to  his 
name  before.  He  was  flattered  by  this  show  of 
respect,  and  Clarence  could  not  have  approached  him 
in  any  way  better  calculated  to  gain  his  good  will. 

"  Well,  Mr.  Evans,  I  hope  we  shall  see  much  of 


THE    BURIED   TREASURE.  155 

each  other,"  said  Clarence.  "  It  is  possible  that  I  may 
stay  here  until  spring,  that  is,  if  there  is  good  hunting 
in  the  neighborhood;  is  there?" 

"  Ye  couldn't  come  to  a  better  place,  if  that's  what 
yc  want,"  said  Godfrey. 

"It  is  just  what  I  want.  I  am  very  fond  of  it, 
but  I  know  but  little  about  it,  having  always  lived 
in  the  city,  and  I  shall  need  somebody  to  teach  me. 
I  know  of  no  one  more  capable  of  acting  as  my  in- 
structor than  yourself." 

Clarence  saw  by  the  vacant,  bewildered  expression 
on  the  man's  face  that  he  did  not  understand  his  fine 
language,  so  he  hastened  to  add  : — 

"  I  am  told  that  you  are  a  fine  shot  with  the  rifle 
and  the  best  hunter  in  the  country.  You  never  come 
from  the  woods  without  something  to  show  as  a  proof 
of  your  skill." 

"  Wai,  that  thar's  a  fact,"  said  Godfrey,  who  now 
began  to  see  what  Clarence  was  getting  at.  "  I  know 
right  whar  all  the  game  rises,  an'  as  fur  larnin'  folks 
— wal,  thar's  my  two  boys.  They  didn't  know 
nothin'  when  I  fust  took  'em  in  hand,  an'  to-day 
thar  ain't  nobody  about  here  can  beat  'em." 

"  Then  you  are  just  the  man  I  want,  and  I  wish 


156  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

you  would  take  me  in  hand.  Squirrels  are  plenty 
about  here,  I  suppose  ?" 

"  Ye  can't  run  amiss  of  'em." 

"  Any  deer  or  turkeys  ?" 

"  Now,  stranger,  yer  jest  a  shoutin' !  Is  thar  any  ? 
I  killed  twenty-three  deer  last  winter,  an'  massy 
knows  how  many  turkeys,  kase  I  never  kept  count 
of  'em." 

"  Are  you  too  busy  to  go  out  in  the  woods  with 
me  for  a  little  while  ?" 

"  Wai,  I  have  got  a  sight  o'  work  to  do,  that's  a 
fact,"  said  Godfrey,  who  always  tried  to  make  it 
appear  that  his  time  was  fully  occupied,  "  but  I  reckon 
it  might  wait  till  I  get  back." 

"  I  have  some  cigars  in  my  pocket,"  said  Clarence, 
glancing  at  Godfrey's  dingy  cob-pipe,  "  and  perhaps 
you  would  like  to  shoot  my  rifle  a  few  times,  just  to 
see  how  a  breech-loader  works." 

This  made  Godfrey  sure  that  his  work  could  wait. 
He  hastened  into  the  cabin,  and  presently  returned 
with  his  gun  on  his  shoulder  and  his  bullet-pouch 
under  his  arm.  After  he  had  loaded  the  weapon, 
the  two  climbed  over  the  fence  and  disappeared  in 
the  woods. 


THE    BURIED   TREASURE.  157 


CHAPTER  X. 

WHAT  GODFREY'S  VISITOR  WANTED. 

ODFREY  and  his  visitor  had  not  gone  very  far 
into  the  woods,  before  the  former  told  himself 
that  if  Clarence  had  come  out  there  for  the  purpose 
of  hunting  squirrels,  he  certainly  knew  very  little 
of  the  nature  of  the  animals  of  which  he  was  in  search. 
He  talked  incessantly,  and  in  a  tone  of  voice  loud 
enough  to  frighten  all  the  wild  animals  for  a  quarter 
of  a  mile  around.  He  did  not  say  "  squirrel  "  once, 
and  neither  did  he  appear  to  be  anxious  to  find  any, 
for  he  was  more  interested  in  studying  the  face  of 
his  companion,  than  in  searching  the  tree  tops  where 
the  game  was  most  likely  to  be  found.  So  closely 
did  he  watch  Godfrey  that  the  latter  became  uneasy  ; 
and  when  he  could  no  longer  endure  his  scrutiny  he 
said,  suddenly  : 

"  Do  ye  think  ye  ever  seed  me  afore,  Mr.  Clarence, 
or  what's  the  matter  of  ye  ?  Yer  tongue  says  one 
thing  to  me,  an'  yer  face  says  another." 


158  THE    BURIED    TREASURE. 

"  Well,  what  does  my  face  say  ?"  asked  Clarence. 

"  I  can't  quite  seem  to  make  out,  an'  that's  why 
I  axed  ye.  Ye  look  as  though  ye  wanted  to  say 
something  to  me  and  didn't  know  how  to  begin." 

"  Mr.  Evans,  you  would  soon  make  yourself  rich 
if  you  were  to  turn  fortune-teller,"  said  Clarence. 
"You  have  hit  the  nail  squarely  on  the  head. 
Have  a  weed  ?" 

As  he  spoke,  he  thrust  his  hand  into  one  of  the 
pockets  of  his  game-bag,  and  brought  it  out  again 
filled  with  cigars.  Either  by  accident  or  design  he 
brought  something  else,  too — something  that  fell  on 
the  ground  at  Godfrey's  feet,  and  at  which  he  gazed 
as  if  fascinated.  It  was  the  cob-pipe  he  had  lost  the 
night  before  in  General  Gordon's  potato  patch. 
After  making  sure  that  it  was  his  own  property,  he 
looked  toward  Clarence,  who  could  scarcely  refrain 
from  laughing  outright,  so  utterly  astounded  and 
bewildered  did  Godfrey  seem  to  be. 

"  Whar  did  ye  get  it  ?"  he  demanded,  as  soon  as 
he  could  speak,  "  an'  how  came  ye  by  it  ?" 

"  I  found  it  in  the  potato  patch  where  you  and 
Dan  were  digging  last  night.  You  did  not  find  the 
eighty  thousand,  did  you  ?  Why,  what's  the  matter 
with  you  ?" 


THE   BURIED   TREASURE.  159 

Clarence  was  not  a  little  surprised  at  the  effect  of 
his  words.  They  seemed  to  take  away  all  Godfrey's 
strength,  and  to  crush  him  completely.  He  wilted 
before  the  boy's  eyes  like  a  blade  of  grass  that  had 
been  struck  by  the  frost.  He  looked  around  for  a 
place  to  sit  down,  but  as  he  could  not  find  any  to 
suit  him,  he  sat  down  right  where  he  was  and  groaned 
aloud. 

"  What's  the  matter  with  you  ?"  repeated  Clarence. 

"  Who  told  you  that  was  my  pipe  ?"  asked  Godfrey. 

"My  intuition." 

"  Yer  what  ?" 

"  My  instinct." 

Godfrey  looked  more  bewildered  than  ever.  "  Ye 
mean  that  the  haunt  told  ye,  don't  ye  ?"  said  he. 

"The  haunt!"  repeated  Clarence.  "What's 
that?" 

"  Why,  the  sperrit ;  the — the — ole  Jordan's  ghost. 
He  was  thar,  kase  I  seed  him.  Whar  was  you,  Mr. 
Clarence?" 

"  I  was  in  the  house,  where  all  honest  folks  were 
at  that  time  of  the  night.  Did  you  say  you  saw  a 
ghost  ?" 

"  I  did  say  so,  an'  I  done  seed  it,  too." 

"  What  did  it  look  like  ?" 


160  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

"  I  didn't  see  all  of  him — only  jest  the  eye  ;  an' 
that  was  a  watchin'  us,  kase  I  could  see  it  wink." 

"Where  was  it?"  asked  Clarence,  elevating  his 
eye-brows. 

"  Down  in  the  fence  corner,  clost  by  that  big 
butternut  tree." 

The  boy  stared,  then  laid  down  his  rifle  and 
seated  himself  on  the  nearest  log.  He  seemed  to  be 
very  much  impressed  by  what  he  had  heard. 

"  I  knowed  all  the  time  that  you  didn't  come  out 
here  to  shoot  no  squirrels,"  said  Godfrey,  "  kase 
if  they  was  what  ye  wanted,  ye  could  a  found  a  cart- 
load of  'em  nigher  to  the  gen'ral's  house.  Now, 
what  be  ye  a  goin'  to  do  about  it  ?  Be  ye  goin'  to 
tell  yer  uncle?" 

"  That  depends  entirely  upon  yourself,"  was  the 
reply,  which  quickly  put  all  Godfrey's  fears  at  rest. 
"I  would  much  rather  help  you  dig  up  the  barrel 
and  then  divide  its  contents  with  you — that  is,  if 
there  is  any  barrel  there,  and  we  have  a  chance  of 
finding  it." 

As  Godfrey  had  already  committed  himself  he  knew 
that  it  was  too  late  to  deny  anything,  so  he  replied 
that  to  the  best  of  his  knowledge  and  belief  the  bar- 
rel was  hidden  somewhere  in  that  potato-patch ;  and 


THE   BURIED   TREASURE.  161 

at  the  boy's  request  he  went  on  to  tell  why  he  thought 
so.  He  told  him  the  story  of  the  buried  treasure 
just  as  he  had  told  it  before  to  the  members  of  his 
family,  and  Clarence  listened  to  every  word.  When 
Godfrey  ended  his  tale  he  questioned  him  closely ; 
and  when  he  got  up  half  an  hour  afterward  to  stretch 
his  arms  and  legs,  he  believed  as  firmly  as  Godfrey 
did  that  there  was  a  fortune  concealed  in  his  uncle's 
potato-patch.  He  said  so  too,  and  proposed  to  God- 
frey that  they  should  search  for  it  together,  and, 
when  they  found  it,  divide  the  contents,  whatever 
they  might  be. 

"  There  is  one  thing  about  it,"  continued  Clarence ; 
"  two  are  enough  to  engage  in  any  such  enterprise 
as  this,  and  I'll  have  nothing  whatever  to  do  with  it, 
unless  you  promise  that  Dan  shall  be  left  in  the 
background.  We  don't  want  him." 

"  No  fear  about  him,"  replied  Godfrey.  "  He  seed 
the  haunt  as  well  as  me,  an'  says  he  won't  go  thar  no 
more." 

"  I  am  glad  of  it,  and  I  hope  he  will  stick  to  his 
resolution,"  said  Clarence.  "But,  in  order  to  make 
sure  of  it,  you  had  better  tell  him  that  you  are  not 
going  near  the  field  again  yourself.  You  can  slip 
away  from  him  every  night,  I  suppose?" 
11 


162  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

"  I  reckon  I  can  ;  but  if  ye  was  in  the  house  last 
night,  whar  all  honest  folks  was,  how  did  ye  find  out 
about  this  bar'l,  Mr.  Clarence  ?  An'  who  brungye 
this  pipe  an'  told  ye  it  was  mine  ?" 

This  was  the  third  or  fourth  time  that  Godfrey  had 
asked  this  question  during  their  interview,  which 
had  already  lasted  more  than  an  hour,  and  Clarence 
replied  now  as  he  had  done  before — 

"  I  can't  tell  you  just  at  present.  I  may  tell  you 
some  day  after  you  and  I  get  to  be  good  friends,  and 
I  find  out  that  I  can  trust  you.  When  you  become 
better  acquainted  with  me,  you  will  see  that  I  have 
a  way  of  finding  out  a  good  many  things." 

The  two  talked  for  an  hour  longer  on  these  mat- 
ters, and  at  the  end  of  that  time  Godfrey  was  satis- 
fied that  what  he  had  at  first  believed  to  be  a  dire 
misfortune,  had  turned  out  to  be  the  luckiest  thing 
that  ever  happened  to  him.  He  knew  that  Dan 
could  never  be  induced  to  go  near  that  potato-patch 
again  in  the  dark,  for  he  had  been  frightened  out  of 
a  year's  growth  already ;  but  Godfrey  needed  an 
assistant  all  the  same,  and  here  was  one  worth  hav- 
ing. Godfrey  was  astonished  at  the  courage  the  boy 
exhibited.  Clarence  scouted  the  idea  of  haunts  and 
ghosts  and  all  other  things  of  like  character,  and 


THE   BURIED   TREASURE.  163 

although  he  did  not  pretend  to  account  for  the  invisi- 
ble hands  that  had  so  often  tripped  Godfrey  up  and 
knocked  his  hat  from  his  head,  he  was  sure  that  there 
was  nothing  supernatural  about  them,  and  promised 
that  if  any  such  pranks  were  played  on  Godfrey 
while  he  was  near,  he  would  find  out  how  they  were 
done,  and  who  was  to  blame  for  them.  They  came 
to  a  perfect  understanding  on  every  point  that  arose 
regarding  their  future  actions  ;  but  there  were  some 
things  connected  with  the  past  that  remained  a  sealed 
book  to  Godfrey.  The  latter  would  have  given  every 
thing  he  possessed  to  know  how  Clarence  came  by 
the  pipe  that  he  had  dropped  in  the  potato-patch, 
and  how  he  had  found  out  who  the  owner  was.  He 
wanted  to  know  how  the  boy  had  learned  of  the  ex- 
istence of  the  barrrel  with  the  eighty  thousand  dol- 
lars in  it ;  how  he  had  found  out  what  his  (Godfrey's) 
name  was ;  how  it  came  that  he  could  recognise  him 
the  moment  he  saw  him ;  and  why  he  offered  to 
assist  him  in  looking  for  the  barrel.  If  he  had  been 
like  most  nephews,  he  would  have  gone  straight  to 
his  uncle  and  told  him  what  was  going  on  in  his  po- 
tato-patch after  dark.  Godfrey  tried  his  best  to  sur- 
prise or  coax  Clarence  into  giving  him  some  informa- 
tion on  these  points,  but  without  the  least  success ; 


164  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

and  he  was  finally  obliged  to  make  up  his  mind  that 
they  were  mysteries  that  time  only  could  clear  away. 

Another  thing  that  surprised  and  delighted  God- 
frey was  the  condescension  and  familiarity  with  which 
the  boy  treated  him.  Clarence  was,  at  the  same 
time,  much  more  respectful  to  him  than  Dan  was, 
and  Godfrey  already  began  to  feel  perfectly  at  ease 
in  his  presence.  He  saw  the  force  of  one  command 
that  Clarence  laid  upon  him,  and  readily  promised  to 
obey  it,  namely  :  that  no  matter  how  intimate  they 
might  be  while  they  were  by  themselves,  there  was 
to  be  none  of  that  sort  of  thing  should  they  chance 
to  meet  in  company.  They  must  meet  as  strangers^ 
and  never  so  much  as  look  at  each  other.  They 
did  not  want  to  arouse  anybody's  curiosity  or  sus- 
picions, and  so  they  could  not  be  too  careful. 

When  the  matter  had  been  thoroughly  discussed 
and  they  knew  just  what  they  were  going  to  do,  they 
arose  and  walked  slowly  towards  the  cabin.  They 
stopped  on  the  way  to  shoot  a  few  squirrels,  and 
Godfrey,  surprised  at  the  accuracy  of  the  little  breech- 
loader, which  seemed  as  light  as  a  feather  beside  his 
long,  heavy  muzzle-loader,  declared  that  he  would 
have  one  exactly  like  it,  just  as  soon  as  he  received 
his  share  of  the  contents  of  the  barrel.  They  held 


THE   BURIED   TREASURE.  165 

another  short  consultation  when  they  reached  the 
clearing,  and  after  each  had  promised  to  be  at  the 
general's  barn  as  soon  after  dark  as  he  could  get 
there,  Clarence  started  homeward,  while  Godfrey 
filled  his  pipe,  and  sat  down  to  smoke  and  think. 
He  was  in  such  a  fever  of  suspense  that  he  never 
thought  of  getting  himself  any  dinner,  and  even  when 
supper  time  came,  he  could  scarcely  arouse  himself 
from  his  air-castle  building,  long  enough  to  eat  his 
share  of  the  corn-bread  and  squirrels.  When  it  began 
to  grow  dark  he  grew  more  restless  than  ever,  and 
his  impatience  to  be  at  work  increased  every  minute. 
He  was  not  afraid  of  old  Jordan's  haunt  so  long  as 
he  was  in  the  presence  of  the  general's  nephew,  and 
neither  was  he  any  longer  afraid  of  the  work  he 
might  have  to  do  before  the  barrel  would  be  brought 
to  light ;  for  Clarence  had  discoursed  in  such  glowing 
language  of  the  comforts  and  pleasures  that  could  be 
purchased  for  eighty  thousand  dollars,  that  Godfrey 
would  have  thought  nothing  of  digging  up  twenty 
acres  with  a  single  spade,  if  he  could  obtain  that 
amount  of  money  by  so  doing. 

"  Dannie,"  said  Godfrey,  who  saw  that  the  boy 
was  loitering  about  as  if  waiting  for  something,  "  it's 


166  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

time  fur  us  to  be  lookin'  fur  that  bar'l  agin,  I 
reckon." 

"  Wai,  ye  can  look  then,  if  ye  want  to,"  was  the 
dutiful  reply,  "but  I  don't  stir  one  inch.  I  don't 
want  to  see  ole  Jordan's  haunt  agin,  an'  I  don't 
b'lieve  the  bar'l's  thar,  nohow." 

"  Ye've  hit  centre  agin,  Dannie,  like  ye  allers  do," 
replied  his  father.  "  I  don't  b'lieve  it's  thar  nuther ; 
an'  if  it  is,  ten  acres  is  too  much  ground  fur  two  fel- 
lers to  dig  up." 

"  Then  whar  be  yer  goin'  ?"  asked  Dan,  as  God- 
frey arose  to  his  feet  and  picked  up  his  hat. 

"  Wai,  I  ain't  agoin'  nowhars ;  but  I  can't  sleep 
arter  losin'  them  eighty  thousand,  so  I  am  goin'  out 
to  walk  about  a  bit  afore  goin'  to  bed.  Ye  go  in  an' 
stay  with  yer  mam,  like  a  good  boy,  an'  yer  poor 
ole  pop'll  go  out  an'  think  over  his  hard  luck." 

These  words,  and  the  way  they  were  spoken,  were 
enough  to  arouse  Dan's  suspicions  at  once.  His 
father  never  called  him  a  good  boy  or  addressed  him 
in  that  wheedling  tone,  unless  he  had  an  object  to 
gain.  And  the  fact  that  he  was  going  off  alone  in 
the  dark  was  another  thing  that  looked  suspicious. 
He  had  not  done  such  a  thing  for  long  months ;  and 
after  a  little  reflection  Dan  very  natually  arrived  at 


THE    BURIED    TREASURE.  167 

the  conclusion  that  there  was  something  going  on 
that  his  father  did  not  want  him  to  know  anything 
about.  He  went  into  the  house  and  stayed  a  minute 
or  two,  and  then  came  out  and  hurried  down  the  road 
towards  General  Gordon's  lane. 

Meanwhile  Godfrey  was  making  the  best  of  his 
way  toward  the  barn,  where  he  expected  to  meet  his 
new  friend,  Clarence.  He  walked  with  noiseless  foot- 
steps, casting  anxious  glances  on  all  sides  of  him, 
and  acting  altogether  like  a  man  who  expected  to 
encounter  some  terrible  danger.  Indeed  this  was 
just  what  he  did  expect.  He  opened  the  creaking 
gate  that  led  from  the  lane  into  the  barn-yard,  and 
was  frightened  almost  out  of  his  senses  when  he  saw 
a  dark  figure  rise  suddenly  into  view  and  come 
toward  him.  His  first  impulse  was  to  take  to  his 
heels  ;  but  he  checked  it  and  drew  a  long  breath  of 
relief  when  he  heard  a  well-known  voice  say,  in  no 
very  amiable  tones  : 

"  Have  you  arrived  at  last  ?  I  began  to  think  you 
were  never  coming." 

"  Yes,  I've  come,"  replied  Godfrey,  "but  I  'most 
wish  I  had  stayed  to  hum.  'Tain't  honest,  sich  work 
as  this  yere  hain't.  If  thar's  a  bar'l  with  eighty 
thousand  dollars  in  gold  an'  silver  into  it,  hid  in  the 


168  THE    BURIED    TREASURE. 

gen'ral's  tater-patch,  we'd  oughter  tell  him,  'stead 
of  goin'  an'  diggin'  it  up  ourselves  !" 

"  Hallo  !  what's  come  over  you  all  of  a  sudden  ?" 
demanded  Clarence,  angrily.  "  You  didn't  talk  this 
way  when  I  last  saw  you." 

"  I  know  it;  but  it  was  daylight  then." 

"  Yes ;  and  now  that  it  is  dark  you  have  turned 
coward,  have  you  ?" 

"  Wai — no  !  but  if  I  should  see  ole  Jordan's  white 
coat  down  thar  in  that  tater-patch,  I  do  think  in  my 
soul  it  would  be  the  last  of  me." 

"  Well,  you'll  not  see  him  or  his  white  coat,  either. 
You  haven't  heard  of  him  for  long  years,  and  who 
knows  but  he  is  dead  ?" 

"  I'm  sartin  he  is,"  returned  Godfrey,  earnestly. 

"  Then  you  have  nothing  to  fear  from  him." 

"  Not  from  him,  I  know ;  but  his  haunt  is  what 
bothers  me.  I've  seed  that  once,  an'  nobody  can't 
make  me  say  I  didn't." 

"  I'll  promise  you  that  you  shall  never  see  it 
again,"  said  Clarence,  impatiently.  "  Why,  man 
alive,  just  think  of  it !  Some  people  would  be  willing 
to  work  and  slave  for  a  whole  life  time  to  make 
forty  thousand  dollars,  and  here  we  have  a  chance 
to  dig  it  up  in  half  an  hour — in  less  time,  too,  if  we 


THE    BURIED   TREASURE.  169 

happen  to  strike  the  right  spot.  Doesn't  that  thought 
put  any  courage  or  ambition  into  you  ?" 

Probably  it  did,  for  without  another  word  Godfrey 
seized  the  shovel  that  Clarence  extended  toward 
him,  and  hurried  away  in  the  direction  of  the  potato- 
patch. 

We  need  not  follow  them  any  farther,  for  they  did 
not  find  the  hidden  treasure  that  night.  It  will  be 
enough  to  say  that,  following  the  example  Clarence 
set  him,  Godfrey  did  something  he  had  not  done 
before  for  a  number  of  years — he  worked  until  he 
raised  a  copious  perspiration  ;  that  he  kept  a  bright 
look  out  for  the  eye  of  fire  that  had  so  badly  frightened 
him  and  Dan  the  night  before  ;  that  he  and  his  com- 
panion dug  a  dozen  holes  in  what  they  supposed  to 
be  the  most  "likely"  spots,  in  each  case  shovelling 
back  the  earth  they  had  thrown  out,  so  that  their 
work  might  not  attract  the  attention  of  any  of  the 
general's  field  hands  in  the  morning ;  that  after  three 
hours'  hard  labor  Godfrey  handed  his  shovel  to 
Clarence,  who  promised  to  put  it  back  where  he  had 
found  it ;  and  that  the  two  separated  with  mutual 
promises  to  meet  again  at  the  same  place  and  hour 
on  the  following  evening.  Neither  of  them  were 
disheartened  by  their  failure.  On  the  contrary, 


170  THE    BURIED    TREASURE. 

Godfrey  was  encouraged,  for  he  had  learned  to  his 
satisfaction  that  if  old  Jordan's  haunt  had  really 
come  back  there  to  protect  the  barrel,  he  would  not 
appear  so  long  as  Clarence  Gordon  was  on  the  ground. 
He  went  home  and  slept  soundly  after  his  unusual 
exercise,  and  awoke  the  next  morning  feeling  that 
he  was  nearer  to  attaining  his  hopes  than  he  had 
ever  been  before. 

"Yes,  jest  a  quarter  of  an  acre  nearer,"  said  he, 
"  kase  what  ground  we  dug  up  last  night,  won't  never 
have  to  be  dug  up  agin.  Mr.  Clarence  is  better  to 
have  along  in  sich  work  as  that  nor  an  army  of  them 
lazy  Dans  would  be,  kase  he  ain't  afeared  of  nothing, 
an'  pitches  in  an'  does  his  share.  It  was  jest  amazin' 
how  he  did  fling  the  dirt  outen  them  holes." 

Breakfast  being  over  Godfrey's  pipe  came  into  use, 
and  he  smoked  and  meditated  during  the  best  part 
of  the  forenoon.  His  family,  as  usual,  were  all  away, 
and  he  had  the  premises  to  himself.  There  was  no 
one  to  disturb  him,  and  he  could  build  air-castles  to 
his  heart's  content.  In  this  agreeable  occupation  he 
passed  the  time  until  eleven  o'clock,  and  was  then 
called  back  to  earth  again,  by  the  sound  of  footsteps 
coming  rapidly  along  the  road.  He  looked  up,  and 
saw  that  the  one  who  had  so  rudely  aroused  him  was 


THE    BURIED    TREASURE.  171 

his  hopeful  son  Dan,  whose  whole  appearance  indi- 
cated that  he  had  something  marvellous  to  communi- 
cate. One  look  was  enough  to  satisfy  Godfrey  of 
this  fact,  and  his  heart  fairly  came  up  into  his  mouth. 
He  began  to  imagine  all  sorts  of  evil  tilings  directly  ; 
and  being  anxious  to  know  the  worst  at  once,  he  tried 
hard  to  speak  to  Dan,  but  could  not  utter  a  sound  to 
save  his  life. 

Dan  lost  no  time  in  passing  over  the  fifty  yards 
that  lay  between  him  and  the  cabin.  As  he  threw 
himself  on  the  bench  beside  his  father,  his  rifle  slipped 
from  his  grasp  and  fell  to  the  ground,  and  his  head 
moved  from  side  to  side  as  if  he  had  lost  all  control 
of  it. 

"Now,  then!"  exclaimed  Godfrey,  finding  his 
tongue  at  last. 

"  0,  pop  !"  cried  Dan,  "  it's  come.  We  did  see 
it  that  night." 

"  What's  come,  an'  what  night  did  we  see  it?" 

"Why,  ole  Jordan's  haunt,"  gasped  Dan.  "I 
seed  him  jest  now  in  broad  daylight — I  did,  as  sure's 
I'm  settin'  on  this  yere  bench  tellin'  ye — an'  thar 
was  others  seed  him  too ;  an'  thar  was  that  eye  of 
his'n  in  the  middle  of  his  head,  an'  it  kept  a  flickerin' 


172  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

an'  a  winkin'  jest  as  it  done  that  night  in  the  dark. 
0,  my  soul !" 

Godfrey  hardly  knew  what  to  do  with  himself,  so 
terrified  and  astounded  was  he.  He  took  his  pipe 
out  of  his  mouth,  jumped  up  from  the  bench,  and 
looked  all  around  as  if  he  were  trying  to  make  up 
his  mind  which  way  to  run  first. 

"  0,  it  ain't  a  comin'  here,"  said  Dan,  who  could 
tell  by  these  movements  what  his  father  was  thinking 
about.  "  It  done  went  into  the  gen'ral's  barn.  It's 
got  a  hidin'-place  in  thar." 

These  words  reassured  Godfrey,  who  being  satisfied 
that  the  terrible  apparition  was  at  a  safe  distance, 
seated  himself  on  the  bench  again,  and  began  to 
question  Dan.  He  hoped  that  the  boy  was  mistaken, 
and  that  his  very  lively  imagination  had  converted  a 
stump  or  some  other  object  he  had  seen  in  the  woods, 
into  what  he  supposed  to  be  old  Jordan's  ghost ;  but 
Dan  gave  his  evidence  in  such  a  way,  and  was  so 
very  positive  on  every  point  on  which  his  father  asked 
information,  that  Godfrey  was  obliged  to  believe  that 
he  had  seen  something  wonderful.  Perhaps  after 
the  reader  hears  Dan's  story  he  will  believe  it  too. 
We  will  follow  him,  but  tell  it  in  our  way. 

Dan  said  he  had  had  better  luck  in  the  woods  that 


THE    BURIED   TREASURE.  173 

morning  than  he  usually  did — the  bunch  of  squirrels 
he  exhibited,  and  to  which  he  had  held  fast  during 
his  headlong  flight,  proved  that  statement — and  hav- 
ing shot  all  the  game  he  wanted,  he  was  coming  home 
by  way  of  the  general's  lane.  He  saw  the  hostler 
and  two  or  three  other  negroes  standing  in  front  of 
the  barn,  and  when  he  came  up  he  found  that  they 
were  holding  an  earnest  consultation,  and  that  they 
were  all  more  or  less  frightened.  Dan  at  once  in- 
quired into  the  cause  of  their  alarm,  and  was  informed 
that  something  very  strange  and  mysterious  had  just 
happened.  The  hostler  was  busy  with  his  usual 
duties  in  the  barn,  and  the  others  were  at  work  in 
the  field  close  by,  when  a  queer-looking  object  sud- 
denly made  its  appearance  among  them.  It  was 
dressed  in  a  suit  of  white  cottonade,  and  looked  and 
acted  like  an  old,  decrepit  negro ;  but  it  could  not 
have  been  that,  for  if  it  had  been,  it  would  have 
returned  some  of  the  numerous  greetings  that  were 
addressed  to  it.  Besides,  it  did  not  seem  to  hear  or 
see  anything. 

It  was  first  discovered  by  the  hostler,  and  where 
it  came  from  he  couldn't  tell.  It  walked  past  him, 
and  out  at  the  door  toward  the  place  where  the  men 
were  at  work  in  the  field.  These — there  were  three 


174  THE    BURIED   TREASURE. 

of  them — thought  they  recognised  in  it  an  old  friend 
from  whom  they  had  long  been  separated,  and  throw- 
ing down  their  hoes  they  hurried  toward  the  figure, 
extending  their  hands  and  crying  out :  "  How  do, 
Uncle  Jordan  !"  But  the  figure  paid  no  attention 
to  them,  and  it  finally  dawned  upon  the  negroes  that 
it  was  not  Jordan  after  all,  but  his  spirit,  which  had 
come  back  to  visit  the  scenes  with  which  the  faithful 
slave  had  been  familiar  while  in  the  flesh.  After 
that  the  figure  had  all  the  room  it  wanted.  The 
negroes  backed  off  and  watched  it  as  it  walked  slowly 
about  the  barn-yard,  and  finally  disappeared  behind 
one  of  the  corn-cribs.  They  waited  for  it  to  appear 
again,  but  as  it  did  not,  one  of  the  boldest  ventured 
to  draw  near  and  peep  around  the  corner  of  the  crib. 
There  was  no  one  in  sight. 

This  made  it  evident  that  the  object  they  had  seen 
was  a  spirit,  and  nothing  else ;  for  if  it  had  been  a 
human  being,  it  could  not  have  got  out  from  behind 
the  corn-crib  without  being  seen  by  some  of  the 
watchful  negroes.  The  crib  joined  the  barn,  and 
there  was  no  entrance  to  either  of  the  buildings  on 
that  side  that  could  be  made  available,  except  the 
door,  and  that  could  be  seen  through  the  front  doors, 
which  stood  wide  open.  There  was  a  window  which 


THE   BURIED   TREASURE.  175 

opened  into  a  storeroom  in  the  barn,  but  it  was 
securely  nailed,  and  had  not  been  opened  for  a  num- 
ber of  years. 

The  negroes  told  this  extraordinary  story  in  low 
tones,  and  rolled  the  whites  of  their  eyes  and  trem- 
bled and  gave  other  indications  that  their  minds  were 
in  a  very  unsettled  state,  and  that  a  very  small  thing 
would  get  up  a  first-class  panic  among  them.  As 
Dan  listened  the  cold  chills  crept  all  over  him,  and 
his  hair  seemed  to  stand  on  end.  What  then  must 
have  been  his  terror  when  one  of  the  negroes  sud- 
denly clapped  his  hands  and  shrieked : 

"  Good  Lord  a  mussy,  look  down  on  us  poor,  mis- 
erable niggers  !  Dar  he  is  now  !" 


176  THE    BURIED   TREASURE. 


CHAPTER  XI. 

OLD  JORDAN  SHOWS  HIMSELF. 

rriHIS  startling  announcement  was  accompanied 
by  such  strange  contortions  on  the  part  of  the 
negro  who  made  it,  that  Dan  was  completely  un- 
nerved, and  would  have  taken  to  his  heels  in  short 
order,  had  he  not  suddenly  lost  all  control  over  him- 
self. His  whole  body  seemed  weighed  down  with 
iron.  He  did,  however,  manage  to  turn  his  head 
and  look  in  the  direction  in  which  his  sable  com- 
panions were  gazing,  and  sure  enough,  there  he  was 
— an  old,  rheumatic  negro,  bent  half  double  with  age, 
and  dressed  in  that  peculiar  costume  so  common 
among  field  negroes  before  the  war.  He  leaned 
heavily  upon  a  staff — which,  however,  he  planted 
firmly,  almost  viciously  on  the  ground  with  every 
step,  as  if  there  was  plenty  of  strength  left  in  his  old 
arm — and  walked  in  that  indescribable  manner  which 
no  one  ever  saw  attempted  by  anybody  except  a 
plantation  negro. 


THE    BURIED   TREASURE.  177 

When  first  seen  he  was  in  the  middle  of  the  lane ; 
and  how  he  ever  got  there  without  being  observed, 
was  a  mystery.  He  was  coming  toward  the  barn, 
and  when  he  arrived  opposite  to  it  he  turned  toward 
the  open  doors,  and  Dan  and  the  terrified  negroes 
backed  hastily  out  of  his  way.  He  looked  neither  to 
the  right  nor  left,  but  entered  the  barn,  went  the 
whole  length  of  it,  and  disappeared  through  the  door 
at  the  other  end. 

"  That's  ole  Jordan,  if  I  ever  seed  him,"  exclaimed 
one  of  the  negroes,  all  of  whom  turned  as  white  as 
their  black  skins  would  let  them. 

"  No,  sar  ;  'tain't  ole  Jordan,  nudder — dat  ain't," 
said  another ;  "  kase  ole  Jordan,  if  it  was  him, 
wouldn't  go  right  fru  us  dat  way,  widout  speakin'  to 
nobody.  Whar's  he  gwine  now  ?" 

The  negro,  as  he  asked  this  question,  started  on 
tiptoe  toward  the  back  door,  followed  by  his  com- 
panions and  Dan.  Arriving  on  the  spot  where  the 
figure  had  last  been  seen,  they  looked  in  every  direc- 
tion, but  could  see  nothing  of  it.  Gathering  a  little 
more  courage,  they  went  to  the  end  of  the  corn-crib 
and  looked  around  it.  There  was  no  one  in  sight. 
After  that  they  went  around  the  barn,  keeping  close 
together  for  mutual  protection,  but  old  Jordan  had 
12 


178  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

disappeared  as  completely  as  though  he  had  never 
been  in  existence.  Then  the  negroes  began  to  grow 
frightened  again.  The  hostler  declared  that  he 
would  never  go  into  that  barn  again  ;  those  who  had 
been  at  work  in  the  field  retreated  in  great  haste 
toward  the  house;  and  Dan,  who  dared  not  stay 
there  alone,  shouldered  his  rifle,  got  over  the  tall 
gate  somehow,  and  stepped  out  for  home  at  his  very 
best  pace. 

This  was  the  substance  of  the  story  Dan  told  his 
father,  and  Godfrey  listened  to  it  with  open  mouth 
and  staring  eyes.  He  knew  that  ghosts  appeared  at 
night — nobody  could  talk  or  laugh  him  out  of  that 
belief,  for  he  knew  it  to  be  true  by  his  own  experi- 
ence— but  he  had  never  before  heard  that  they  grew 
so  bold  as  to  show  themselves  in  broad  daylight. 
"  This  yere  beats  my  time  all  holler,"  said  he,  as 
he  found  his  tongue.  "  I  declar',  folks  ain't  safe 
nowhar,  an'  at  no  time,  day  nor  night.  Dannie, 
that  thar  bar'l  is  in  that  tater-patch  as  sure's  you're 
an  inch  high ;  kase  if  it  ain't,  what  makes  ole  Jor- 
dan's haunt  come  back  here  foolin'  around?  He 
didn't  act  as  though  he  wanted  to  hurt  anybody,  did 
he?" 

"No,  but  he  had  a  big  club  in  his  hand,"  said 


THE    BURIED    TREASURE.  179 

Dan,  whose  frightened  optics  had  magnified  an  ordi- 
nary walking-stick,  just  as  they  had  cheated  their 
owner  into  believing  that  the  apparition,  or  whatever 
it  was,  had  an  eye  of  fire  in  the  middle  of  his  fore- 
head. 

"  What  sort  of  a  club  was  it  ?"  asked  his  father. 

"  0,  a  great  big  one !  an'  it  was  all  curled  and 
twisted  up  like  a  snake." 

"  I've  seed  ole  Jordan  walkin'  with  it  a  million 
times,"  said  Godfrey.  "  He  used  it  this  yere  way, 
didn't  he?"  he  added,  picking  up  a  stick,  that  hap- 
pened to  be  lying  near  him,  and  imitating  the  ener- 
getic manner  in  which  the  old  negro  handled  his 
cane. 

"  That's  jest  the  way  he  done,"  said  Dan. 

"  An'  he  walked  this  way,  didn't  he  ?"  continued 
Godfrey,  bending  his  back  and  legs,  drawing  his 
head  down  between  his  shoulders  and  mimicking  old 
Jordan's  style  of  progression. 

"  Yes  ;  that's  jest  the  way  he  walked." 

"  Then  it's  his  haunt,  an'  thar  ain't  no  mistake 
about  it,"  said  Godfrey,  throwing  down  the  stick  and 
pushing  back  his  sleeves.  "  Jest  fetch  out  my  rifle, 
Dannie." 

"  0,  pop,  what  be  ye  goin'  to  do  ?"  gasped  Dan. 


180  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

"  I'm  goin  up  thar,"  was  the  reply ;  and  any  one 
who  had  seen  Godfrey  when  he  made  it,  never  would 
have  imagined  that  only  a  few  short  hours  before  he  had 
been  so  badly  frightened,  that  he  could  not  run  half 
fast  enough  to  suit  him.  He  looked  brave  enough  to 
meet  a  lion  single-handed.  "  I  want  to  see  that 
thing,"  he  continued,  "an*  I  want  to  see  it  in  the 
daytime,  too — not  arter  dark,  as  I  did  afore !" 

"  Wai,  now,  I  ain't  agoin'  to  stay  here  alone,  I  bet 
ye,"  whined  Dan. 

"  Then  come  along  with  yer  pop." 

"No,  I  won't." 

"  Ye  needn't  be  afeared ;  kase  I've  heard  tell  that 
them  haunts  can't  harm  nobody  in  the  daytime. 
Ye  see,  if  it's  ole  Jordan's  haunt,  his  comin'  back 
here  proves  that  we've  dug  a  hole  purty  clost  to  that 

thar  bar'l ;  an'  if  Mr. Hum  !  Bring  out  my 

we'pon,  Dannie." 

Godfrey  was  about  to  add  that  if  Mr.  Clarence, 
after  hearing  of  what  had  just  taken  place,  was  not 
afraid  to  continue  the  search  for  the  buried  treasure, 
he  (Godfrey)  was  not  afraid  either ;  but  remembering 
that  Dan  was  to  be  kept  in  ignorance  of  the  arrange- 
ments he  had  made  with  the  general's  nephew,  he 
checked  himself  in  time,  and  again  desired  the  boy 


THE   BURIED   TREASURE.  181 

to  bring  out  his  rifle.  Godfrey  did  not  intend  to 
shoot  at  old  Jordan's  apparition  if  he  saw  it.  He 
only  wanted  to  take  the  weapon  with  him  because  he 
felt  safer  while  it  was  in  his  hands.  He  loaded  it 
very  carefully  when  his  son  brought  it  out,  and 
placing  it  on  his  shoulder  started  off,  Dan  keeping 
close  by  his  side. 

Godfrey  was  by  no  means  as  much  at  his  ease  as 
he  seemed  to  be,  and  had  it  been  after  sunset,  he 
could  not  have  been  hired  to  venture  near  the  gene- 
ral's lane  after  what  he  had  heard.  He  considered 
that  he  was  about  to  do  a  very  reckless  thing,  but  he 
kept  resolutely  on,  and  finally  reached  the  barn. 
The  wide  doors  that  gave  entrance  into  the  lane 
stood  open,  but  the  building  -was  deserted  by  all  liv- 
ing things  save  the  horses  and  a  few  chickens,  and 
an  unearthly  silence  seemed  to  brood  over  it.  God- 
frey dared  not  enter.  He  walked  up  close  to  the 
threshold,  and  stretching  out  his  long  neck,  peeped 
into  every  corner.  While  he  was  thus  engaged,  a 
smothered  exclamation  from  Dan  caused  him  to 
straighten  up  as  suddenly  as  if  he  had  been  shot. 
"  Laws  a  massy  !"  cried  Dan.  "  Thar  he  is  agin  !" 
"  0,  my  soul !"  ejaculated  Godfrey,  shivering  all 
over. 


182  THE    BURIED   TREASURE. 

He  looked  around,  and  saw  the  object  of  his'search 
coming  down  the  lane  toward  the  barn.  Just  one 
look  was  enough  for  Godfrey,  and  in  that  one  look 
he  took  in  everything  about  the  apparition  ;  for  such 
he  believed  it  to  be.  He  remembered  old  Jordan  so 
well  that  he  would  have  recognised  him  on  the  instant 
if  he  had  seen  him  in  Asia.  Here  he  was  now  before 
his  very  eyes.  There  could  be  no  mistake  about  it. 
The  peculiar  style  of  progression,  the  clothes,  the 
manner  in  which  he  handled  his  cane,  and  the  whole 
appearance  of  the  approaching  object,  all  proclaimed 
that  it  could  be  none  other  than  the  missing  Jordan. 
Godfrey  did  not  wait  for  him  to  come  any  nearer. 
Quickly  shouldering  his  rifle  he  darted  through  the 
barn,  out  at  the  back  door,  and  ran  for  his  life,  pay- 
ing no  heed  to  the  frantic  appeals  to  "  wait  a  minute," 
which  the  terrified  Dan  shouted  after  him.  He  made 
his  way  across  the  general's  grounds  to  the  lake,  the 
shore  of  which  he  followed  until  he  came  to  the 
woods ;  and  there  he  sat  down  on  a  log  to  recover 
his  breath,  and  to  wait  for  Dan. 

The  latter  came  at  last,  and  his  first  act  was  to 
take  his  father  to  task  for  deserting  him  in  so  cow- 
ardly a  manner.  Godfrey  had  nothing  to  say  in  reply. 
Forgetting  that  the  boy  had  been  just  as  anxious 


THE    BURIED    TREASURE.  183 

as  himself  to  get  safely  out  of  sight  of  the  appari- 
tion, he  asked  a  good  many  questions,  hoping  to 
learn  what  old  Jordan  had  done,  where  he  had  gone, 
and  whether  or  not  he  had  said  anything ;  but  on 
these  points  Dan  could  give  him  no  information. 
The  two  went  home  together,  and  passed  the  remain- 
der of  the  day  in  a  state  of  mind  that  can  hardly  be 
described.  When  night  came  Godfrey  did  not  sit 
on  his  bench  as  usual ;  he  stayed  in  the  house,  never 
once  giving  a  thought  to  Clarence  Gordon,  who  was 
waiting  for  him  at  his  uncle's  barn.  He  kept  a  bright 
blaze  in  the  fire-place,  so  that  the  interior  might  be 
lighted  up  as  much  as  possible.  When  he  got  ready 
to  go  to  bed  he  took  pains  to  fasten  the  door  securely 
— and  that  was  a  thing  he  had  never  been  known  to 
do  before — and  to  place  his  rifle  close  by  the  head  of 
the  "  shake-down,"  so  that  it  could  be  readily  seized 
in  case  of  emergency. 

The  next  morning  he  ate  but  little  breakfast,  and 
seemed  to  be  greatly  relieved  when  he  could  sit  on 
the  bench  with  his  pipe.  He  smoked  and  meditated 
for  two  hours  (during  this  time  all  the  members  of 
his  family  had  gone  off  about  their  usual  vocations 
— Mrs.  Evans  to  work  at  the  house  of  a  neighbor, 
David  to  the  fields  to  continue  the  education  of  the 


184  THE    BURIED   TREASURE. 

pointer,  and  Dan  to  the  woods,  to  spend  the  day  in 
shooting  squirrels  and  making  a  pretence  of  building 
turkey- traps) — and  was  then  aroused  by  the  appear- 
ance of  Clarence  Gordon,  who  was  the  very  person 
he  most  wished  to  see.  The  boy  carried  his  rifle  in 
the  hollow  of  his  arm,  and,  as  before,  stopped  near 
the  cabin  to  bring  a  squirrel  out  of  one  of  the  tall 
trees  growing  by  the  roadside.  Godfrey  hastened  to 
meet  him,  and  was  greeted  with  : 

"  You're  a  nice  fellow  to  keep  a  promise,  are  you 
not?" 

"  Mr.  Clarence,  have  they  heard  of  it  up  to  the 
Gordons  ?"  asked  Godfrey,  almost  in  a  whisper. 

"  There's  an  awful  row  up  there  among  the  negroes 
about  a  ghost,  or  some  such  nonsense,  if  that's  what 
you  mean,"  answered  Clarence.  "  There  isn't  a 
black  man  or  woman  on  the  plantation  that  can  be 
hired  to  go  near  the  barn,  and  my  uncle  is  afraid  all 
his  hands  are  going  to  leave  him  to  gather  his  crops 
as  best  he  can.  But,  of  course,  that  wasn't  what 
kept  you  away  last  night." 

"  I  reckon  it  was  jest  that  very  thing,"  said  God- 
frey. 

"  Then  you're  a  coward  and  ought  to  be  heartily 
ashamed  of  yourself.  That's  my  opinion  of  you  !" 


THE    BURIED   TREASURE.  185 

Godfrey  jumped  up  and  knocked  his  heels  together, 
coming  d  -wn  with  his  feet  spread  out  and  his  fists 
doubled  up,  as  he  always  did  when  he  was  angry  and 
about  to  say  something  very  emphatic.  But  when 
he  had  done  this  much  he  stopped  short,  for  he  saw 
that  he  had  not  frightened  the  boy  in  the  least.  He 
had  only  surprised  him.  Clarence  had  never  before 
seen  a  backwoods  fighter  limber  up  his  joints  pre- 
vious to  going  into  action. 

"Well,  what  do  you  mean  by  that?"  he  asked, 
coolly. 

Godfrey  did  not  think  it  best  to  say  that  he  had 
been  getting  ready  to  punish  the  boy  for  calling  him 
a  coward,  so  he  replied  : 

"  If  you  had  seed  it  yourself,  Mr.  Clarence,  what 
would  you  say  ?" 

"  Do  you  mean  that  thing  you  call  a  haunt  ?  I 
never  saw  one,  and  there  are  none." 

"  I  know  better ;  kase  thar  is,"  said  Godfrey, 
earnestly.  "  I  seed  it  myself  with  my  own  two  eyes 
in  broad  daylight,  an'  so  did  Dannie  an'  three  or  four 
of  the  gen'ral's  niggers." 

"  Well,  it  is  very  strange  that  no  one  else  could 
see  it,"  said  Clarence.  "  My  aunt  wanted  to  take 
Marsh  and  me  out  riding  yesterday  afternoon,  but 


186  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

the  hostler  wouldn't  hitch  up  because  he  was  afraid 
to  go  near  the  barn ;  so  uncle,  and  Don,  and  Bert, 
and  I  went  out  there  and  searched  high  and  low  for 
the  thing  that  had  frightened  him,  and  could  find 
nothing." 

"  In  course  you  couldn't,  kase  it's  a  haunt.  No- 
body can't  see  'em,  'ceptin'  when  they  wants  to  be 
seed." 

"Nonsense!"  exclaimed  Clarence.  "I  didn't 
suppose  there  was  a  man  in  this  day  and  age  of  the 
world  who  would  talk  as  you  do.  Did  you  see  any 
thing  yesterday  ?" 

"  Yes,  sar,  I  did." 

"  You  saw  it  yourself \  did  you  ?" 

"Yes,  I  done  seed  it  my  own  self." 

"  What  did  it  look  like  ?" 

"  It  looked  jest  as  ole  Jordan  did  the  last  time  I 
seed  him,  afore  he  run  away  with  the  Yanks." 

"  Then  you  can  safely  bet  it  was  he — not  his 
1  haunt,'  as  you  call  it,  but  he,  himself,  in  his  own 
proper  person.  If  you  had  taken  hold  of  him  you 
would  have  found  solid  bone  and  muscle  in  your 
hands." 

"No,  1  wouldn't,"  said  Godfrey,  solemnly.  "I 
had  my  rifle  in  my  hands,  an'  if  I  had  drawed  a  bead 


THE    BURIED  TREASURp.  187 

on  him,  the  bullet  would  have  gone  through  him  as 
slick  as  grease,  an'  never  hurt  him." 

Clarence  stamped  his  foot  impatiently.  "  It  is 
well  you  didn't  try  it,"  said  he.  "  If  you  had,  you 
would  now  be  in  jail  with  a  good  chance  of  being 
tried  for  a  very  serious  offence." 

"  Do  you  reckon  it  was  ole  Jordan  hisself  ?"  asked 
Godfrey,  who  seemed  to  be  impressed  by  the  boy's 
arguments. 

"  I  know  it  was,"  said  Clarence. 

"We  all  thought  he  was  dead." 

"  Well,  it's  no  uncommon  thing  for  people  to  be 
mistaken,  is  it  ?  If  he  were  dead  how  could  he  come 
back  here  ?" 

"What  do  you  reckon  he's  come  back  for?" 

"You  tell?" 

"  An'  if  it  was  him,  his  own  self,  what  was  the 
reason  he  didn't  speak  to  nobody  ?  He  knowed  two 
of  the  niggers  that  was  thar,  an'  he  knowed  me. 
'Tain't  likely  he'd  'member  Dannie,  kase  the  boy  was 
too  leetle  when  he  went  away." 

"  Answer  the  question  yourself,"  replied  Clarence. 
"  You  are  as  good  at  guessing  as  I  am." 

"  Wai,  if  it's  him,  his  own  self,  I  wish  he  hadn't 
come  back,"  said  Godfrey. 


188  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

"  I  don't,  for  I  intend  to  make  use  of  him.  The 
old  fellow  is  not  above  earning  a  dime  or  two,  is  he  ?" 

"  I  never  yet  seed  the  man  that  was,  black  or 
white,"  said  Godfrey. 

"  Then  I  shall  make  it  my  business  to  scrape  an 
acquaintance  with  the  old  fellow,  if  I  can  find  him, 
and  ask  him  if  he'd  like  to  make  a  thousand  dollars. 
He'll  say  <  yes,'  of  course ;  and  then  I'll  tell  him  that 
all  he  has  got  to  do  to  have  the  money  paid  right 
over  to  him,  is  to  show  me  where  he  hid  that  barrel 
before  he  ran  away  with  the  Yankees." 

Godfrey  backed  toward  the  bench  and  looked  at 
Clarence  without  speaking. 

"  If  he  will  do  it — and  I  know  I  should  if  I  were 
in  his  place — I  shall  be  glad  he  has  come  back," 
continued  Clarence.  "  I  took  a  good  look  at  that 
potato-patch  yesterday,  and  I  tell  you  there's  a  lot 
of  ground  in  it.  It  will  take  us  till  doomsday  to 
dig  it  full  of  holes  four  or  five  feet  deep,  and  I  can't 
wait  so  long.  I  need  the  money  now — to-day  !" 

Godfrey  looked  at  Clarence  from  head  to  foot, 
taking  in  at  a  glance  all  the  fashionable  and  expen- 
sive trappings  he  had  about  him,  both  useful  and 
ornamental,  and  wondered  Avhy  he  should  be  so  much 
in  need  of  money.  If  he  had  possessed  the  cash 


THE   BURIED   TREASURE.  189 

value  of  the  boy's  gold  watch  and  chain  he  would 
have  been  very  well  contented,  and  would  have 
thought  no  more  about  the  barrel  and  its  contents 
while  he  had  ten  dollars  of  it  remaining. 

"  Now,  don't  you  suppose  that  if  you  were  to  hang 
around  uncle's  barn  for  a  while,  you  could  gain  an 
interview  with  old  Jordan  ?"  asked  Clarence. 

"No,  sar,"  answered  Godfrey,  hastily.  "I 
wouldn't  see  him  again  fur  no  money.  An'  right 
here's  one  thing  that  mebbe  ye  didn't  think  of: 
Wouldn't  he  be  an  ole  fule  to  go  an'  show  ye  whar 
that  thar  bar'l  is,  an'  get  only  a  thousand  dollars  fur 
it,  when  he  could  go  and  dig  it  up  by  hisself  an'  take 
it  all — the  hul  eighty  thousand?" 

"  I  have  thought  of  that,"  said  Clarence,  "  and 
have  made  up  my  mind  what  I  shall  do  in  case  he 
refuses  to  help  me.  Mark  my  words :  If  I  get  my 
hands  on  that  old  nigger,  I'll  find  out  where  that 
barrel  is,  if  he  knows." 

This  was  all  Clarence  would  say  on  this  point  just 
then.  His  companion  tried  hard  to  make  him  ex- 
plain himself,  but  all  Clarence  would  say  was,  that 
he  had  a  way  of  finding  out  things  he  wanted  to  know, 
and  with  that  Godfrey  was  obliged  to  be  content. 
Before  separating  they  made  another  agreement, 


190  THE    BURIED   TREASURE. 

•which  was  that  they  would  meet  that  night,  as  soon 
as  it  was  fairly  dark,  at  the  summer-house  on  the 
shore  of  the  lake.  Godfrey  appointed  the  place  of 
meeting  himself,  saying  that  he  would  not  go  near 
the  general's  barn  again  if  he  had  an  army  at  his 
back.  He  promised,  moreover,  to  meet  Clarence 
there  every  night,  and  to  faithfully  assist  him  in 
prosecuting  the  search  until  the  barrel  was  found. 
If  Clarence  succeeded  in  obtaining  an  interview  with 
the  old  negro  and  finding  out  where  the  eighty 
thousand  dollars  were  hidden,  so  much  the  better ; 
but  that  was  a  matter  with  which  Godfrey  himself 
would  have  nothing  to  do. 

That  was  another  long  day  to  Godfrey.  When  he 
had  leisure  to  calmly  think  over  the  promise  he  had 
made,  he  wondered  how  he  had  dared  do  it ;  and  as 
the  afternoon  waned  and  the  hour  appointed  for  the 
meeting  at  the  summer-house  drew  nearer,  he  became 
really  alarmed,  and  was  several  times  on  the  point 
of  making  up  his  mind  that  he  would  stay  at  home. 
But  he  did  not  stay  at  home.  He  went,  agreeably  to 
promise,  and  for  half  an  hour  sat  in  the  summer- 
house  starting  at  the  rustle  of  every  leaf  and  holding 
himself  in  readiness  to  take  to  his  heels  at  the  first 
eight. of  anything  that  might  look  like  old  Jordan's 


THE    BURIED   TREASURE.  191 

white  coat.  When  at  last  Clarence  arrived,  he  was 
so  overjoyed  to  see  him,  that  he  seized  his  hand  and 
shook  it  until  the  boy  forcibly  withdrew  it  from  his 
grasp. 

"  I  couldn't  get  away  any  sooner,"  said  Clarence. 
"  We  were  having  some  music  up  there." 

"  Did  they  say  anything  about  the  haunt  ?"  asked 
Godfrey. 

"  No,  they  didn't  say  anything  about  that,  for  they 
have  sense  enough  to  know  that  there  is  no  such 
thing  in  the  world,"  said  Clarence,  impatiently. 
"  They  talked  about  old  Jordan,  and  uncle  seems  to 
think  he  has  come  back ;  but  he  says  it  is  very 
strange  that  the  old  fellow  doesn't  show  himself 
about  the  house." 

"Say,  Mr.  Clarence,"  said  Godfrey,  suddenly; 
"  mebbe  he's  come  back  on  purpose  to  dig  up  the 
bar'l  hisself !" 

"I  thought  of  that,"  replied  the  boy.  "But  if 
that  was  his  object,  he  wouldn't  be  so  foolish  as  to 
show  himself  to  anybody.  He  has  kept  out  of  my 
way  so  far.  Don  and  I  have  been  about  the  barn 
all  the  afternoon  watching  for  him.  If  I  once  get 
my  eyes  on  him  I'll  see  what  he's  made  of,  unless  he 
shows  that  he  can  run  faster  than  I  can." 


192  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

"  What  does  Mr.  Don  think  about  it  ?" 

"  0,  he's  like  the  rest.  He  don't  know  what  to 
think  about  it." 

"  Did  he  ever  say  anything  to  ye  about  the  bar'l  ?" 

"  Yes ;  he  said  just  enough  to  make  me  think  that 
the  barrel  is  there.  I  pumped  him  to-day,  and  he 
said  in  so  many  words  that  Jordan  hid  a  barrel  of 
stuff  somewhere,  and  hinted  that  none  of  the  family 
ever  dug  it  up.  I  heard  enough  to  make  me  deter- 
mined to  go  ahead,  even  if  I  have  to  dig  up  the  whole 
of  that  potato-patch  by  myself.  If  you  are  ready 
we'll  go.  I  have  placed  a  couple  of  shovels  where  I 
can  find  them." 

So  saying  Clarence  led  the  way  toward  the  potato- 
patch,  and  Godfrey  tremblingly  followed.  The  shovels 
were  found,  and  the  two,  after  walking  a  short  dis- 
tance along  the  fence  that  separated  the  garden  frx>m 
the  potato-patch,  were  about  to  climb  over  into  the 
field  where  their  operations  were  to  be  conducted, 
when  Godfrey  suddenly  laid  his  hand  on  his  compan- 
ion's arm. 

"  Laws  a  massy  !  What's  that,  Mr.  Clarence  ?" 
said  he,  in  a  suppressed  whisper. 

"  What's  what  ?"  demanded  the  boy,  who,  in  spite 


THE   BURIED   TREASURE.  193 

of  his  boasted  courage,  shivered  as  if  he  had  been 
unexpectedly  plunged  into  a  bath  of  ice-water. 

"  Hark  a  minute  !"  said  Godfrey.  "  Don't  ye 
hear  it  now  ?" 

Clarence  held  his  breath  and  listened  intently. 


194  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 


CHAPTER  XII. 

OLD   JORDAN   IN  TROUBLE. 

T  DO  hear  it,"  said  Clarence,  as  soon  as  he  caught 
the  sound  that  had  attracted  Godfrey's  attention. 
"  There's  some  one  digging  out  there  in  the  field." 

"  That's  jest  what  it  is,"  said  Godfrey,  in  a  tremb- 
ling voice.  "  Don't  let's  go  no  further,  Mr.  Clar- 
ence." 

"  What's  the  use  of  being  afraid  ?"  returned  the 
boy.  "  It  is  a  man,  of  course,  for  if  it  were  anything 
else  it  couldn't  use  a  shovel.  You  are  not  afraid  of 
a  man,  are  you  ?" 

No,  there  was  no  man  in  that  part  of  the  country 
that  Godfrey  was  afraid  to  meet  on  equal  terms ;  and 
to  prove  it  he  laid  down  his  shovel,  clenched  his 
hands  and  jumped  up  and  knocked  his  heels  together. 

"  I  don't  know  what  you  mean  by  that  nonsense," 
said  Clarence,  impatiently.  "  If  you  are  afraid,  go 
home ;  if  you  are  not,  come  along  with  me  !" 

As  the  boy  said  this  he  placed  his  hands  on  the 


THE   BURIED   TREASURE.  195 

top  rail  of  the  fence  and  vaulted  lightly  over  it, 
closely  followed  by  Godfrey,  who  touched  the  ground 
on  the  opposite  side  almost  as  soon  as  Clarence  did. 
Side  by  side  they  moved  cautiously  in  the  direction 
from  which  the  sound  of  the  digging  came,  and  after 
advancing  a  short  distance,  Godfrey  threw  himself 
flat  on  his  face  to  make  some  investigations.  The 
night  being  very  dark,  of  course  all  objects  on  the 
ground  were  invisible  to  them  ;  but  by  placing  them- 
selves in  such  a  position  that  they  would  have  the 
lighter  sky  for  a  background,  any  object  they  wished 
to  examine  was  rendered  quite  distinct  to  their  gaze. 
This  they  both  proceeded  to  do,  Clarence  following 
Godfrey's  example,  and  when  they  arose  to  their 
feet  again  a  few  seconds  later  and  compared  notes, 
they  found  that  both  had  arrived  at  the  same  conclu- 
sion— that  there  was  a  man  in  the  field  but  a  few 
rods  away  from  them,  and  that  he  was  digging  a  hole 
with  a  shovel.  He  had  gone  down  so  deep  already 
that  his  legs  as  far  as  his  knees  were  concealed,  and 
that  proved  that  he  had  not  come  there  to  steal 
potatoes.  Was  he  looking  for  the  barrel  ?  If  so, 
who  was  he,  and  how  did  he  find  out  that  there  was 
any  barrel  there  ? 

"  Come  on,"  whispered  Clarence,  as  these  thoughts 


196  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

passed  through  his  mind.  "We'll  soon  know  all 
about  it.  Be  careful  not  to  make  the  least  noise. 
If  he  starts  to  run  go  after  him  and  bring  him  back. 
We  must  find  out  who  he  is,  and  what  he  means  by 
this  business." 

Guided  by  the  strokes  of  the  shovel,  which  fell 
upon  their  ears  at  regular  intervals,  Clarence  and 
his  companion  slowly  and  cautiously  drew  nearer  to 
the  workman,  who,  greatly  to  their  surprise,  never 
paid  the  least  attention  to  their  approach.  He  must 
have  heard  the  squeaking  of  Clarence's  boots — they 
would  squeak,  no  matter  how  carefully  he  stepped — 
and  the  rustle  of  the  dry  grass  and  vines  that  covered 
the  potato-hills,  but  he  was  not  frightened  from  his 
work.  Finally  Clarence  was  near  enough  to  him  to 
lay  hold  of  his  arm.  Even  then  the  man  never  looked 
up  or  ceased  his  work,  and  Clarence  began  to  feel  as 
he  had  never  felt  before.  His  heart  beat  rapidly 
and  all  his  strength  seemed  to  be  leaving  him,  but 
he  managed  to  say,  in  a  very  steady  voice  : 

"  Look  here,  young  fellow,  this  sort  of  game  won't 
work  with  us,  you  know.  Come  up  out  of  that  hole 
and  let's  see  who  you  are." 

"  0,  my  soul !"  exclaimed  Godfrey,  who  had 
stooped  down  to  obtain  a  peep  at  the  man's  face. 


THE   BURIED   TREASURE.  197 

"  Turn  him  loose,  Mr.  Clarence  !  That's  ole  Jordan's 
haunt !  I'd  know  that  ole  white  coat  anywhar. 
0,  my  sakes  alive  !" 

"  Come  back  here !"  said  Clarence,  in  much  the 
same  tone  that  he  would  have  used  had  he  been 
addressing  a  disobedient  hound.  "  Don't  you  dare 
run  away,  unless  you  want  General  Gordon  to  know 
all  about  this." 

These  words  were  spoken  just  in  time.  In  a 
moment  more  Godfrey  would  have  been  scudding 
across  the  field  at  the  top  of  his  speed.  Tremblingly 
he  approached  Clarence,  and  had  there  been  light 
enough  to  enable  him  to  distinguish  his  features,  the 
boy  would  have  seen  that  they  were  as  white  as  a 
sheet. 

"  You  gave  me  to  understand  that  you  are  not 
afraid  of  any  man  in  the  country,"  continued  the 
latter.  "  Now  prove  it.  Reach  out  your  hand  and 
take  hold  of  this  fellow's  arm  ;  and  if  you  don't  feel 
solid  flesh  in  your  grasp,  you  may  take  yourself  off 
as  soon  as  you  please  !" 

"Is  it  a  man  ?"  gasped  Godfrey. 

"  Of  course  it  is.  Come  here  and  see  for  your- 
self." 

"  Why  don't  he  say  something  then  ?" 


198  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

"  I  suppose  it  is  because  he  don't  want  to.  Come 
here  and  take  hold  of  him,  and  we'll  soon  find  means 
to  make  him  use  his  tongue,  if  he  has  one !" 

Very  reluctantly  Godfrey  obeyed  the  command. 
He  extended  his  hand  and  made  a  grasp  at  the  pri- 
soner's arm,  fully  expecting  that  his  fingers  would 
pass  through  it  as  they  would  pass  through  the  air ; 
but  to  his  surprise  and  intense  relief  his  grasp  closed 
upon  a  small  but  very  compact  bunch  of  muscle.  He 
seized  it  firmly  and  held  fast  to  it,  and  then  his  cour- 
age all  returned,  and  he  was  as  brave  as  Clarence 
himself. 

"  Now,"  said  the  latter,  "  I  want  to  take  a  good 
look  at  this  fellow." 

Striking  a  match  on  the  sleeve  of  his  coat  as  he 
spoke,  he  examined  the  man  by  the  aid  of  the  light 
it  threw  out,  and  saw  that  he  was  a  coal-black  negro, 
and  that  he  was  dressed  in  a  suit  of  something  that 
had  once  been  white,  but  which  was  patched  with 
so  many  different  kinds  of  cloth  that  it  was  hard  to 
find  any  of  the  original  material  in  it. 

"Are  you  old  Jordan  ?"  he  demanded. 

There  was  no  answer  returned  by  the  negro,  who 
was  as  passive  in  the  hands  of  his  captors  as  if  he 
had  been  a  lump  of  clay. 


THE  CAPTURE  OF  "OLE  JORDAN." 


THE    BURIED   TREASURE.  199 

"  This  won't  do,  old  fellow,"  said  Clarence,  an- 
grily. "  You  can't  play  off  on  us  in  this  way.  You 
had  better  open  your  mouth,  or  we'll  take  you  straight 
to  the  general.  Perhaps  he  can  find  means  to  make 
you  tell  what  you  are  doing  in  his  potato-patch  at 
this  time  of  night." 

"  0,  that  ain't  no  way  to  talk  to  a  nigger,  Mr. 
Clarence,"  said  Godfrey.  "I  knows  who  he  is,  an' 
I  can  soon  make  him  speak,"  he  added,  drawing  back 
his  shovel  preparatory  to  punching  old  Jordan  in  the 
ribs  with  it. 

"  Hoi'  on  dar,  boss  !"  cried  the  prisoner. 

"  Thar,  now,  what  did  I  tell  ye  ?"  exclaimed  God- 
frey, triumphantly.  "Don't  sound  much  like  ole 
Jordan's  voice,  though !" 

"  Now  that  you  have  found  your  tongue,  I  want 
to  talk  to  you,"  said  Clarence.  "  Would  you  like  to 
make  a  thousand  dollars  ?" 

"  0,  I'm  goin'  to  make  a  heap  more'n  dat,  boss," 
replied  the  negro. 

"  You  are  ?     How  are  you  going  to  do  it  ?" 

"  Jordan,"  said  Godfrey,  "  did  you  come  back  to 
dig  up  that  thar  bar'l  you  kivered  up  here  in  thia 
tater-patch  on  the  day  the  Yanks  cut  the  levee .?" 

"  Dat's  tellin',"  replied  the  negro. 


200  THE    BURIED   TREASURE. 

"  Do  you  know  where  the  barrel  is  ?"  asked  Clar, 
ence. 

"  Course  he  does,"  exclaimed  Godfrey,  "  kase 
he's  the  one  that  kivered  it  up.  Whar  is  it,  Jordan  ? 
Pint  out  the  spot,  an'  ye  shall  go  free  without  no 
harm  hein'  done  to  ye;  but  if  ye  don't  tell " 

"  Hoi'  on  dar,  boss  !"  cried  the  old  negro,  as  God- 
frey once  more  drew  back  his  spade. 

"  Do  you  know  where  the  barrel  is  ?"  asked  Clar- 
ence. "  Answer  that  question  !" 

"  I  reckon  I  does,  boss  !" 

"Well,  where  is  it?" 

"  0,  I  didn't  say  I'd  tell  dat,  did  I  ?  It  'longs 
to  my  ole  marse,  Gen'ral  Gordon." 

"  He's  got  more'n  his  share  already,"  said  God- 
frey. 

"  Den  I  reckon  I'se  got  jest  as  much  right  to  dat 
bar'l  an'  what's  into  it,  as  anybody,"  said  the  negro ; 
"  mebbe  more,  kase  I'se  the  one  that  hid  it !" 

"  Hold  on  a  minute,  Godfrey,"  said  Clarence,  as 
his  companion  raised  the  shovel  threateningly.  "  Step 
this  way,  a  moment.  Old  man,  you  stay  right  where 
you  are.  If  you  make  any  attempt  to  run,  I'll  throw 
this  shovel  at  you!" 

Clarence  and  Godfrey  drew  off  on  one  side,  just 


THE    BURIED    TREASURE.  201 

out  of  ear-shot  of  the  negro,  and  the  former  said,  in 
a  suppressed  whisper : 

"  Are  you  sure  that's  old  Jordan  ?" 

"  Just  as  sure  as  I  can  be,"  replied  Godfrey. 
"  'Tain't  his  haunt — I  can  see  that  now — but  ole 
Jordan  his  own  self." 

"  I  am  glad  you  are  so  positive,  for  there  is  some- 
thing about  this  business  that  doesn't  look  just  right 
to  me.  If  it  is  he,  he  has  come  back  to  dig  up  that 
barrel  himself.  I  wonder  if  it  is  somewhere  about 
the  spot  where  he  was  digging  !  How  are  we  going 
to  make  him  tell  ?" 

"  Lick  it  outen  him,"  suggested  Godfrey. 

"  0,  that  would  never  do  in  the  world.  He'd 
raise  the  neighborhood  with  his  howling." 

"Wai,  mebbe  goin'  without  grub  an'  water  fur  a 
few  hours  will  loosen  up  his  tongue." 

"  That's  the  idea,"  said  Clarence,  joyfully.  "  No 
one  will  miss  him,  for  those  who  have  seen  him  since 
he  came  back  think  he  is  a  ghost.  Where  can  we 
take  him  and  keep  him  safe  until  he  tells  us  what  we 
want  to  know  ?" 

"  I  reckon  my  tater-hole  is  as  good  a  place  aa 
any,"  said  Godfrey,  after  thinking  a  moment.  "I 


202  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

don't  have  nothing  to  put  in  it  now,  an'  nobody  ever 
goes  nigh  it." 

"  Can  we  lock  him  up  there  ?" 

"  No,  but  we  can  tie  him  up,  an'  that  will  do  jest 
as  well.  Howsomever,  I  don't  much  keer  to  go  into 
any  sich  business  as  that,  Mr.  Clarence.  S'pose  it 
should  come  out  on  us  ?" 

"  How  in  the  world  is  it  going  to  come  out  on  us  ?" 
asked  Clarence,  impatiently.  "  You'll  not  tell,  will 
you?" 

"  No,  sar,"  answered  Godfrey,  with  great  emphasis. 
"  I  couldn't  live  here  if  I  did." 

"  Well,  I  shall  not  tell,  either.  You  may  be  sure 
of  that ;  so  I  don't  see  how  it  can  become  known. 
We  can  starve  old  Jordan  into  opening  his  mouth, 
and  when  he  gets  ready  to  tell  us  where  the  barrel 
is,  we'll  dig  it  up,  divide  the  contents,  and  the  first 
boat  that  comes  along  will  take  me  away  from  here. 
I  don't  care  whether  I  go  up  or  down  the  river,  so 
long  as  I  have  my  pockets  full  of  money." 

"  An'  what'll  I  do  ?"  asked  Godfrey. 

"  You  can  do  as  you  please.  You  want  to  stay 
here  and  spend  your  share,  don't  you?" 

"  But  what'll  I  do  with  the  nigger  ?" 

"I  don't  care  what  you  do  with  him,"  was  the 


THE   BURIED   TREASURE.  203 

boy's  mental  reply.  "  So  long  as  I  get  safely  away 
from  here,  you  and  the  nigger  can  settle  the  business 
between  you  in  any  way  you  see  fit.  That  is  a  matter 
in  which  I  am  not  interested."  But  aloud  he  said: 
"  0,  we'll  get  rid  of  him  somehow.  We'll  think  about 
that  when  the  time  comes.  Now,  we'll  give  old.  Jor- 
dan one  more  chance  to  earn  his  freedom,  and  if  he 
doesn't  see  fit  to  improve  it,  it  is  no  fault  of  ours.  He 
will  have  to  go  to  the  potato-hole  and  be  tied  up  there." 

Godfrey  was  not  at  all  pleased  with  this  arrange- 
ment, and  he  wondered  why  he  had  been  foolish 
enough  to  suggest  it.  As  much  as  he  wanted  to  be 
rich,  he  would  never  have  dared,  had  he  been  left  to 
himself,  to  resort  to  such  desperate  measures  as  these 
to  gain  his  object.  The  thought  of  it  was  enough  to 
make  him  tremble.  He  wished  he  had  never  seen 
Clarence,  or  had  anything  to  do  with  him.  The  boy 
was  so  determined  to  go  through  with  what  he  had 
begun,  and  seemed  to  be  so  utterly  reckless  of  con- 
sequences, that  Godfrey  was  really  afraid  of  him. 

"  Say,  Mr.  Clarence,"  said  he,  suddenly,  "  I  'most 
done  forgot  it,  but  it's  the  gospel  truth,  an'  I  hope  I 
may  be  shot  if  it  hain't,  that  that  tater-hole  of  mine 
has  done  fell  in,  an'  ain't  no  more  account  fur  tyin'  up 
niggers  in.  'Sides,  I  hain't  got  no  ropes  of  no  kind." 


204  THE   BURIED    TREASURE. 

"All  right,  Godfrey,"  said  Clarence,  who  saw 
very  plainly  what  his  companion  was  trying  to  get  at. 
"  We  will  find  out  about  that  when  we  get  there. 
But  let  me  tell  you  one  thing :  If  you  think  you  are 
going  to  back  out  and  leave  me  in  the  lurch,  you  are 
very  much  mistaken.  If  you  will  stick  to  me  and 
do  as  I  say,  we  shall  both  of  us  come  out  all  right ; 
but  if  you  desert  me,  there'll  be  a  breeze  raised  here 
in  this  neighborhood  that  will  make  you  think  that 
war  times  have  come  back,  sure  enough.  Now, 
Jordan,''  he  added,  addressing  the  negro,  "will  you 
tell  me  where  that  barrel  is?" 

"  No,  sar  ! — no,  sar  /"  said  the  old  man,  shaking 
his  head  most  decidedly.  "  Nobody  gets  dat  bar'l 
an'  what's  into  it  'ceptin'  ole  Jordan !" 

"  All  right.  Come  with  us,  and  we  will  see  if 
we  can  find  means  to  make  you  think  differently." 

Clarence  seized  the  old  negro  by  one  arm,  as  he 
spoke,  Godfrey  at  a  sign  from  him  took  hold  of  the 
other,  and  together  they  led  him  across  the  field  until 
they  reached  the  road,  down  which  they  conducted 
him  toward  Godfrey's  cabin.  But  little  was  said 
during  the  walk.  The  negro,  who  was  evidently 
becoming  alarmed,  would  have  talked  fast  enough, 
but  when  his  captors  allowed  him  to  use  his  tongue, 


THE   BURIED   TEEASURE.  205 

he  pitched  his  voice  in  so  high  a  key  that  Clarence, 
alarmed  lest  he  should  arouse  somebody,  sternly 
ordered  him  to  hold  his  peace.  The  old  negro 
changed  his  tactics  now,  and  most  solemnly  declared 
that  he  didn't  know  anything  about  any  barrel ;  that 
his  name  was  not  Jordan  ;  and  that  he  had  gone  into 
the  field  simply  for  the  purpose  of  stealing  some 
potatoes  for  his  breakfast.  But  Clarence  only  laughed 
at  this,  and  assured  him  that  he  was  not  taking  the 
right  course  to  gain  his  liberty.  Potatoes  didn't 
grow  three  feet  under  ground,  he  said,  and  neither 
did  prowlers,  as  a  general  thing,  dig  them  with  a 
shovel.  They  could  do  better  work  with  their  hands. 
If  he  would  go  back  there  and  show  them  where  the 
barrel  was  hidden,  they  would  dig  for  it,  and  the 
moment  they  found  it  they  would  give  him  some- 
thing for  pocket-money,  and  release  him.  This  the 
old  negro  protested  he  could  not  do,  and  Clarence 
assured  him  that  he  should  do  it  before  he  saw  day- 
light again. 

Half  an  hour's  walk  brought  them  within  sight 
of  the  cabin,  and  there  Godfrey  left  Clarence  and 
the  prisoner  while  he  went  forward  to  make  sure  that 
none  of  his  family  were  stirring,  and  to  secure  a 
plow-line  that  hung  up  under  the  shed  beside  the 


206  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

corn-crib,  that  being  the  article  with  which  he  had 
decided  to  confine  old  Jordan.  He  returned  in  a 
few  minutes,  and  once  more  taking  hold  of  the 
negro's  arm,  he  and  Clarence  assisted  him  over  two 
or  three  fences,  through  a  thick  brier-patch  which 
covered  the  site  of  his  former  comfortable  dwelling, 
and  finally  halted  in  front  of  the  potato-hole.  It 
was  simply  an  out-door  cellar,  the  peak  of  the  roof 
rising  to  the  height  of  one's  shoulder,  and  the  eaves 
resting  on  the  ground.  The  cellar  was  quite  deep 
enough  to  permit  a  tall  man  to  stand  upright  in  it, 
as  Clarence  found  when  he  descended  the  stairs  that 
led  into  it.  It  had  successfully  resisted  the  ravages 
of  time,  and  with  the  exception  of  the  steps,  which 
were  in  a  very  dilapidated  state,  was  as  sound  as  it 
was  on  the  day  it  was  built.  The  roof  was  four  feet 
thick,  and  Godfrey  assured  his  companion  that  the 
prisoner  might  shout  for  help  as  long  and  as  loudly 
as  he  pleased,  but  he  could  not  make  himself  heard 
as  far  as  the  cabin,  unless  he  possessed  lungs  with  as 
much  power  as  a  steam-whistle. 

Clarence  now  renewed  his  efforts  to  induce  the 
negro  to  tell  where  the  barrel  with  the  eighty  thous- 
and dollars  in  it  was  hidden  ;  but  the  latter  declared 
that  he  did  not  know;  and  Clarence,  losing  alJ 


THE   BURIED   TREASURE.  207 

patience,  assisted  Godfrey  in  tying  him  fast  to  one 
of  the  stanchions  that  supported  the  roof.  When 
this  was  done  he  felt  his  way  out  of  the  cellar — it 
was  as  dark  as  Egypt  in  there — and  Godfrey  closed 
and  latched  the  door  behind  him.  They  both 
breathed  easier  when  the  work  was  over. 

"Well,  Godfrey,"  said  Clarence,  "your  potato- 
hole  seems  to  be  in  pretty  good  condition  yet ;  and 
you  did  manage  to  find  something  to  tie  the  old  nig- 
ger with  after  all,  didn't  you  ?  Now  remember  that 
it  will  not  be  safe  for  us  to  go  near  him  during  the 
daytime ;  some  one  might  see  us.  We  must  give 
this  cellar  a  wide  berth  for  twenty-four  hours.  If 
the  old  fellow  goes  that  length  of  time  without  any- 
thing to  eat  or  drink,  perhaps  he  will  begin  to  think 
that  we  are  in  earnest." 

Godfrey  made  no  reply.  His  heart  was  not  in 
the  business,  and  he  wished  himself  safely  out  of  it. 
Having  gone  so  far,  however,  there  was  no  way  of 
retreat.  If  old  Jordan  were  released,  he  would  be 
certain  to  tell  of  the  treatment  he  had  received,  and 
that  would  bring  him  and  Clarence  into  serious  trou- 
ble. He  scarcely  heard  his  companion's  cheerful 
good-night,  so  engrossed  was  he  with  his  own  gloomy 
thoughts. 


208  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

Having  taken  leave  of  Godfrey,  Clarence  walked 
rapidly  toward  his  uncle's  house,  little  dreaming  what 
a  commotion  the  events  of  this  night  were  destined 
to  create  there.  He  was  not  nearly  so  light-hearted 
as  he  pretended  to  be.  Now  that  he  had  time  to 
think  calmly  about  what  he  had  done,  he  was  fright- 
ened, and  wondered  how  he  had  ever  had  the  hardi- 
hood to  engage  in  so  reckless  a  piece  of  business. 
"No  matter,"  said  he,  trying  his  best  to  banish  all 
his  dismal  forebodings,  "  twenty-four  hours  in  that 
cellar  will  bring  the  old  nigger  to  his  senses ;  and 
when  I  once  get  my  hands  on  the  money  in  that  bar- 
rel, I'll  bid  good-by  to  America  for  a  while.  Forty 
thousand  dollars  !  Whew  !  This  is  the  only  chance  I 
shall  ever  have  to  make  a  fortune,  and  I  am  deter- 
mined to  improve  it." 

Arriving  at  his  uncle's  house  at  last,  he  stopped 
for  a  few  minutes  to  compose  himself  and  calm  the 
excitement  which  he  knew  must  be  plainly  visible  in 
his  face,  and  then  with  all  the  nonchalance  of  which 
he  was  master,  he  opened  the  door  and  went  in.  He 
stopped  in  the  hall  to  hang  up  his  cap,  and  would 
have  given  anything  he  possessed,  if  he  could  have 
found  some  plausible  excuse  for  going  at  once  to  his 
room.  There  was  a  merry  family  gathering  in  the 


THE   BURIED   TREASURE.  209 

back  parlor,  and  he  did  not  want  to  go  in  there. 
Some  one  was  playing  on  the  piano,  and  the  rest 
were  engaged  in  most  agreeable  conversation,  if  one 
might  judge  by  the  peals  of  laughter  that  now  and 
then  rang  through  the  house.  Clarence  was  hardly 
fit  to  go  among  them,  he  told  himself  as  he  glanced 
at  the  little  mirror  in  the  hat-rack.  His  hair  was 
disheveled,  his  face  flushed,  and  his  boots  and  clothes 
were  covered  with  dust.  While  he  was  making  some 
hasty  improvements  in  his  appearance,  his  Aunt 
Mary  came  into  the  hall.  She  had  heard  him  enter 
and  came  out  to  meet  him. 

"  Come  in  here,  truant,  and  give  an  account  of 
yourself,"  said  she,  pleasantly.  "  What  do  you  mean 
by  deserting  us  every  night  in  this  unceremonious 
manner  ?  Clarence,"  said  she,  shaking  her  finger  at 
him,  and  sinking  her  voice  almost  to  a  whisper, 
"you've  been  smoking  again  !" 

"  I  know  it,"  said  the  boy. 

"  Do  you  find  a  cigar  so  much  more  agreeable 
than  the  society  of  your  friends?" 

"  No,  ma'am  ;  but  I  have  been  in  the  habit  of  it 
so  long,  you  know  ;  and  it  is  hard  to  give  it  up." 

"  I  suppose  it  is ;  but  persevere  and  remember 
that  l  he  that  ruleth  his  spirit  is  better  than  he  that 
14 


210  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

taketh  a  city.'  Where's  Don?  I  thought  he  was 
•with  you !" 

"  I  am  sure  I  don't  know.  I  haven't  seen  him 
since  supper." 

"  Why  that  is  very  strange,"  said  Mrs.  Gordon. 
"  He  has  been  out  for  the  last  two  or  three  nights 
until  nine  or  ten  o'clock,  and  I  don't  know  what  to 
think  about  it.  Come  in,  now.  Lucy  has  been 
waiting  to  practise  the  Sharpshooter's  Waltz  with 
you." 

Much  against  his  will  Clarence  was  led  into  the 
parlor,  and  the  curious  glances  which  all  his  relatives 
directed  toward  him  as  he  entered  made  him  feel  very 
uncomfortable.  His  uncle  thought  he  acted  ill  at 
ease ;  Bert's  mental  comment  was  that  he  had  been 
running  a  race  with  somebody ;  and  Marshall  told 
himself  that  he  must  have  been  rolled  in  a  dust  heap. 
Clarence  could  tell  by  the  expression  on  their  faces 
pretty  nearly  what  they  were  thinking  about,  and  it 
was  with  great  effort  that  he  aroused  himself  suffi- 
ciently to  take  any  interest  in  what  was  going  on. 
He  played  several  tunes  on  his  flute  while  his  cousin 
Lucy  accompanied  him  on  the  piano,  and  as  soon  as 
he  could  do  so  with  any  show  of  reason,  he  bade  the 
company  good-night  and  went  to  bed. 


THE   BURIED   TREASURE.  211 

"I'd  like  to  know  where  in  the  world  you  have 
spent  your  evenings  since  you  have  been  here,"  said 
Marshall,  when  he  joined  him  in  his  room  half  an 
hour  later.  "  Just  as  soon  as  it  grows  dark  you're 
off,  and  that's  the  last  we  see  of  you  until  ten  o'clock. 
Have  you  found  a  billiard  saloon  anywhere  ?" 

"  Perhaps  you  had  better  watch  me,  if  you  are  so 
very  anxious  to  find  put  where  I  go,"  growled 
Clarence,  in  reply.  "  I  am  bored  to  death  with  this 
everlasting  music,  and  it  is  a  great  pity  if  I  can't 
now  and  then  take  a  quiet  stroll  and  a  cigar  without 
exciting  astonishment  and  setting  the  whole  family 
to  questioning  me." 

Clarence  slept  but  little  that  night,  for  his  mind 
was  in  a  very  unsettled  state ;  and  a  dread  of  im- 
pending evil,  which  he  could  not  shake  off,  continually 
haunted  him.  The  first  words  he  exchanged  with 
the  first  person  he  met  the  next  morning,  gave  him 
new  cause  for  alarm.  That  person  was  Bert,  whom 
he  encountered  just  as  he  stepped  into  the  hall. 
His  cousin's  face  was  very  pale,  and  Clarence  saw 
that  he  carried  his  whip  in  his  hand  and  was  dressed 
for  a  ride. 

"  0,  Clarence  !"  cried  Bert.  "  What  do  you  think 
has  become  of  Don  ?" 


212  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

Clarence  could  only  look  the  surprise  which  this 
abrupt  question  occasioned  him.  At  the  same  time 
he  felt  a  sinking  at  his  heart  for  which  he  could  not 
account. 

"  He  wasn't  at  home  at  all  last  night,"  continued 
Bert.  "  We've  made  inquiries  everywhere,  and  the 
last  person  who  saw  him  was  the  hostler,  who  says 
that  Don  went  into  the  barn  about  eight  o'clock,  but 
he  didn't  see  him  come  out  again.  Father  and  I  are 
just  about  to  start  off  to  look  for  him  !" 

Clarence  was  too  amazed  to  speak.  He  hurried 
out  of  the  house  and  to  the  barn,  where  he  found  his 
uncle  in  the  act  of  mounting  his  horse.  There  were 
two  other  persons  in  the  barn — the  hostler  and  God- 
frey Evans.  The  hostler  was  putting  the  saddle  on 
Bert's  pony,  and  Godfrey  stood  around  looking  the 
very  picture  of  misery.  He  brightened  up  when  he 
saw  Clarence  approaching. 

"  Now,  Godfrey,"  said  the  general,  "  will  you  do 
that  much  for  me  ?" 

"  Yes,  sar,  an'  I'll  start  now,"  answered  Godfrey, 
who  made  a  few  rapid  steps  toward  the  gate,  and 
then  suddenly  stopped,  faced  about  and  came  back 
again. 

"  You  know  the  woods  like  a  book,"  continued  the 


THE   BURIED   TREASURE.  213 

general,  "  and  if  Don  is  lost,  you  will  be  more  likely 
to  find  him  than  anybody  else.  Good-morning, 
Clarence  !  I  don't  suppose  you  can  tell  me  anything 
about  Don,  can  you  ?" 

"No,  sir,  I  am  sorry  to  say  I  cannot,"  replied 
Clarence,  who  felt  that  sinking  at  his  heart  again 
when  he  looked  at  Godfrey. 

"  He  has  lately  fallen  into  the  habit  of  roaming 
about  of  nights,"  said  the  general, "  and  I  don't  know 
how  to  account  for  it.  The  boy  is  large  enough  to 
take  care  of  himself,  but  I  don't  think  he  would  stay 
away  so  long  unless  he  were  in  trouble.  I  am  going 
down  the  road  to  see  if  I  can  get  any  tidings  of  him  ; 
Bert  is  going  out  into  the  country ;  Godfrey  has  prom- 
ised to  search  the  woods ;  and  if  you  feel  like  it,  you 
might  jump  on  Don's  pony  and  ride  down  the  river 
road  a  few  miles.  Everybody  down  there  knows  Don, 
and  if  he  went  that  way  before  dark  last  night,  some 
one  must  have  seen  him." 

Clarence  replied  that  he  would  willingly  do  all  in 
his  power  to  find  the  missing  boy,  and  then  Bert  and 
his  father  mounted  their  horses  and  galloped  out  of 
the  gate.  Godfrey  slunk  away  behind  the  corn- 
crib,  and  Clarence,  after  telling  the  hostler  to  put  a 
saddle  on  Don's  pony,  followed  him.  He  found 


214  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

Godfrey  sitting  on  the  ground  and  rocking  himself 
back  and  forth  as  if  he  were  in  great  pain. 

"What's  the  matter  with  you?"  demanded  Clar- 
ence, and  it  was  only  by  a  great  effort  of  will  that  he 
could  bring  himself  to  speak  at  all. 

"  0,  my  soul !"  cried  Godfrey.  "  Does  yer  know 
what  we've  been  an'  done?" 

"  Do  I  know  what  we've  done  ?"  repeated  the  boy. 
"  What  do  you  mean  ?  Speak  out !" 

"0,  my  soul,  how  can  I?"  moaned  Godfrey. 
"  Thar's  the  gen'ral  axin'  me  would  I  s'arch  the 
woods  to  find  that  lost  boy  of  his'n,  an'  thar  he  is, 
this  blessed  minute,  tied  up  hard  an'  fast  in  my  own 
tater-hole.  0,  laws  !  0,  laws  !" 

Clarence  reeled  and  fell  heavily  against  the  corn- 
crib,  as  if  some  one  had  unexpectedly  dealt  him  a 
stunning  blow. 


THE   BURIED   TREASURE.  215 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

HOW   CLARENCE    FOUND   IT   OUT. 

/"CLARENCE  and  his  brother  had  not  been  under 
^^^  their  uncle's  roof  more  than  two  or  three  hours 
before  they  found  that  they  had  been  sadly  mistaken  in 
regard  to  some  opinions  they  had  formed,  and  Mar- 
shall was  honest  enough  to  acknowledge  the  fact,  at 
least  to  himself.  The  "  country  bumpkins,"  as  Clar- 
ence had  sneeringly  called  his  cousins,  proved  to  be 
educated  young  gentlemen,  who,  before  the  day  was 
over,  put  their  dashing  city  relatives  to  the  blush  on 
more  than  one  occasion,  and  forced  them  to  confess 
that  all  the  knowledge  in  the  world  was  not  to  be 
gained  by  simply  travelling  about  Europe.  Don  and 
Bert  exerted  themselves  to  the  utmost  *to  entertain 
their  visitors,  and  so  did  all  the  other  members  of  the 
family ;  and  they  succeeded  so  well  that  Marshall 
told  himself  that  perhaps  his  forced  sojourn  in  the 
country  would  not  turn  out  to  be  so  very  unpleas- 
ant after  all.  But  Clarence,  being  entirely  out  of 


216  THE    BURIED   TREASURE. 

his  element,  was  homesick  already,  and  consequently 
could  take  no  interest  in  anything.  He  cared  little 
for  such  amusements  and  pastimes  as  were  to  be  found 
in  a  happy  cultivated  family  circle.  He  preferred  a 
game  of  billiards  or  cards  with  some  boon  companions, 
and  these  he  could  not  have  so  long  as  he  remained 
under  his  uncle's  roof. 

.The  day  was  a  long  and  dreary  one  to  him.  lie 
played  a  few  times  on  his  flute  while  his  cousin  Lucy 
accompanied  him  on  the  piano ;  spent  an  hour  or  two 
in  walking  about  the  plantation ;  listened  patiently, 
but  without  much  interest,  while  Don  and  Bert  talked 
of  the  various  exciting  and  amusing  incidents  that 
had  happened  in  the  neighborhood  during  the  war ; 
and  as  soon  as  night  came  and  he  could  find  an 
opportunity  to  do  so,  he  slipped  away  by  himself. 
lie  wanted  to  be  alone,  so  that  he  could  think  over 
the  plans  he  had  formed  for  bringing  his  visit  to  a 
speedy  termination,  and  make  up  his  mind  what  sort 
of  a  letter  he  would  write  to  his  mother. 

"  There's  no  fun  to  be  seen  here,"  said  Clarence, 
as  he  drew  a  cigar  from  one  pocket  and  a  match-safe 
from  another.  "  I  can  see  that  with  half  an  eye, 
and  I  can't  endure  the  thought  of  staying  here  for 
six  long  months.  I'd  do  almost  anything  to  raise 


THE    BURIED    TREASURE.  217 

money  enough  to  take  me  away  from  here  this  very 
night.  Now,  what  can  I  say  to  mother,  in  the  letter 
I  intend  to  write  to  her  before  I  go  to  bed,  that  will 
induce  her  to  send  me  fifty  dollars  without  an  hour's 
delay?" 

As  Clarence  asked  himself  this  question  he  lighted 
his  cigar,  and  finding  that  a  fence  ran  across  his 
path,  and  that  he  was  at  such  a  distance  from  the 
house  that  he  could  enjoy  his  smoke  without  fear  of 
interruption,  he  leaned  on  the  top  rail  and  went  off 
into  a  reverie,  from  which  he  was  aroused  a  few  min- 
utes later  by  the  sound  of  voices  and  footsteps. 
Hastily  taking  his  cigar  from  his  mouth  and  putting 
it  behind  him,  he  looked  up  and  saw  a  couple  of  fig- 
ures advancing  toward  him  along  the  fence.  It  was 
so  dark  that  he  could  not  see  who  they  were,  but  it 
flashed  upon  him  that  perhaps  they  _were  Don  and 
Bert,  who  were  out  searching  for  him.  With  an 
exclamation  indicative  of  great  annoyance  and  vexa- 
tion, he  was  about  to  throw  away  his  cigar,  when 
some  words  spoken  in  a  suppressed  tone  of  voice  fell 
upon  his  ear  and  arrested  his  hand. 

By  this  time  the  approaching  figures  were  so  close 
to  him  that  Clarence  made  out  that  they  were  a  man 
and  a  boy ;  and  from  their  conversation  he  learned 


218  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

that  they  had  come  there  to  dig  up  a  barrel.  Clarence 
caught  every  word  they  uttered,  and  could  scarcely 
restrain  his  astonishment  when  he  heard  the  man 
say  : 

"  He  done  a  good  thing  fur  us,  ole  Jordan  did, 
when  he  run  away  without  tellin'  his  missus  whar 
that  bar'l  was  hid.  Now,  Dannie,  let's  try  right 
here  fust.  Ye  begin,  kase  yer  the  youngest,  an'  I'll 
set  down  an'  smoke  an'  watch  ye  till  yer  tired. 
Now,  bar  in  mind  that  yer  workin'  fur  eighty 
thousand  dollars !  Throw  it  out  with  the  fust 
shovelful,  an'  I'll  give  ye  half!" 

Clarence  almost  jumped  from  the  ground  when  he 
heard  this,  and,  like  the  quick-witted  fellow  he  was, 
he  comprehended  the  situation  perfectly ;  but  we 
ought  to  say  that  he  had  something  besides  the  con- 
versation to  which  he  had  just  listened,  to  aid  him 
in  reaching  the  conclusions  he  so  suddenly  formed. 
During  the  day  his  aunt  had  shown  him  several 
articles  of  value  that  had  long  been  heir-looms  in  the 
Gordon  family,  and  explained  to  him  how  she  had 
managed  to  keep  them  secreted  during  the  war. 
The  family  silver  had  been  buried  again  and  again — 
every  time,  in  fact,  that  there  was  the  least  rumor 
of  an  advance  being  made  by  either  army — and  the 


THE    BURIED   TREASURE.  219 

work,  for  the  most  part,  had  been  done  porae  of 
the  negroes  on  the  plantation. 

"  A  good  many  people  lost  property  in  that 
way  which  they  never  recovered,"  said  his  aunt. 
"  The  negroes,  having  concealed  it,  ran  away  with 
the  Federals  without  leaving  any  clue  to  the  hiding- 
place  of  the  valuables,  and  so  they  were  never  found." 

Clarence  had  not  thought  much  of  this  at  the  time, 
but  he  thought  of  it  now,  and  by  connecting  it  with 
the  words  that  had  just  been  uttered  in  his  hearing, 
he  arrived  at  a  tolerably  fair  solution  of  what  would 
otherwise  have  been  a  deep  mystery  to  him.  His  aunt 
had  not  said  so  in  so  many  words,  but  he  inferred  that 
she  had  lost  valuable  property  in  the  way  she  had 
explained.  Clarence  was  sure  of  it  now,  and  he  was 
almost  overwhelmed  by  the  discovery  he  had  made. 

"  Eighty  thousand  dollars  !"  said  he,  to  himself. 
"  It  must  be  in  money,  and  in  gold  and  silver,  too, 
for  my  aunt  says  that  all  the  wealthy  rebels  took  the 
precaution  to  exchange  their  bank-notes  for  specie  at 
the  first  beginning  of  the  trouble  between  the  North 
and  South.  I  hope  to  goodness  they  will  find  it. 
If  they  do,  they  can  rest  assured  that  they'll  not  get 
away  with  it  all." 

The  few  seconds  that  Clarence  passed  in  meditat- 


220  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

ing  and  soliloquizing  in  this  way,  were  employed  by 
Dan  in  getting  ready  for  work,  and  by  Godfrey  in 
picking  out  a  comfortable  place  to  sit  down,  and  in 
filling  and  lighting  his  pipe.  Having  discarded  his 
coat  and  hat,  Dan  threw  out  two  or  three  shovelfuls 
of  earth  ;  but  it  was  heavy  work,  and  Dan,  who  got 
tired  very  easily,  could  not  help  asking  himself  how 
many  such  shovelfuls  he  would  have  to  throw  out 
before  the  coveted  barrel  could  be  brought  to  light. 
He  told  his  father  that  ten  acres  was  a  great  deal  of 
ground,  and  Godfrey,  to  encourage  him,  reminded 
him  that  there  were  eighty  thousand  dollars  in  gold 
and  silver  buried  somewhere  about  there,  and  that 
they  must  have  it  if  they  were  obliged  to  dig  up  the 
whole  state  of  Mississippi. 

It  was  while  Dan  was  looking  all  about  the  field 
to  see  how  large  it  was,  that  he  discovered  the  lighted 
end  of  Clarence  Gordon's  cigar  shining  through  the 
darkness.  Clarence  was  leaning  half  way  over  the 
fence  in  his  eagerness  to  hear  all  that  was  said,  and 
smoking  furiously,  too  much  interested  and  excited 
to  remember  that  the  little  coal  of  fire  on  the  end  of 
his  Havana,  which  glowed  brightly  for  a  moment 
and  then  faded  almost  entirely  away,  as  he  drew  in 
and  puffed  out  the  smoke,  could  be  seen  by  the  par- 


THE    BURIED   TREASURE.  221 

ties  he  was  watching,  should  either  of  them  chance 
to  look  that  way.  We  know  that  they  did  look  that 
way,  both  of  them,  and  that  half  a  minute  later  the 
field  was  deserted,  and  Clarence  was  standing  alone 
beside  the  fence. 

The  boy  was  utterly  amazed  at  the  haste  with 
which  Godfrey  and  his  son  took  themselves  out  of 
sight,  and  all  unconscious  of  the  fact  that  he  was  the 
cause  of  their  alarm,  he  drew  himself  quickly  down 
beside  a  tree  that  stood  in  the  fence  corner,  put  his 
cigar  behind  him  and  looked  all  around,  expecting 
to  see  some  member  of  his  uncle's  family  or  one  of 
his  servants  approaching.  But  there  was  no  one  in 
sight,  and  after  listening  and  watching  for  a  few 
minutes,  Clarence  climbed  over  into  the  field  to  see 
what  progress  the  two  prowlers  had  made  with  their 
work. 

The  hope  that  they  might  have  uncovered  the 
barrel  was  very  short-lived,  for  he  found  that  Dan 
had  made  just  no  headway  at  all.  The  hole  he  had 
dug  could  have  been  covered  up  with  a  hat. 

"  I  wonder  what  in  the  world  it  was  that  frightened 
them  away,"  said  Clarence,  in  deep  perplexity. 
"  They  were  frightened,  of  course,  or  they  would  not 
have  run  as  they  did  after  holding  that  whispered 


222  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

consultation.  I  can't  see  or  hear  anything  alarming, 
arid  I  do  wish  they  had  stayed  long  enough  to  dig 
up  the  barrel.  Eighty  thousand  dollars  !  If  it  is  to  be 
found  I  must  have  some  of  it.  If  I  knew  where  I 
could  find  a  shovel,  I'd  dig  awhile  myself.  But  no 
matter.  They  will  probably  come  back  again;  if 
not  to-night  then  some  other  night,  and  I  shall  be 
on  hand  when  the  barrel  is  found,  no  matter  if  I 
don't  get  a  wink  of  sleep  for  the  next  six  months. 
Hello!  what's  this?"  he  added,  as  his  fingers  came 
in  contact  with  the  pipe  Godfrey  had  dropped. 

He  held  it  up  between  him  and  the  sky,  and  when 
he  saw  what  it  was,  was  about  to  throw  it  away,  when 
he  thought  of  something.  He  held  the  pipe  sus- 
pended in  the  air  a  moment,  then  put  it  into  hid 
pocket  and  walked  back  to  his  hiding-place  again. 
He  waited  and  watched  there  for  nearly  an  hour, 
hoping  that  Godfrey  and  his  son  would  return,  but 
being  satisfied  at  last  that  they  had  no  intention  of 
coming  back  that  night,  and  fearing  that  if  he  re- 
mained away  from  the  house  any  longer,  somebody 
would  be  out  to  see  what  had  become  of  him,  he 
pitched  the  stump  of  his  cigar  into  the  bushes  and 
walked  away  from  the  fence. 

"  Now,  this  is  just  what  I  am  going  to  do,"  said 


THE    BURIED   TREASURE.  223 

Clarence,  who  had  already  thought  the  matter  over 
and  determined  upon  his  course  of  action.  "I'm 
going  to  find  out  who  those  fellows  are,  if  there  is 
any  possible  way  for  me  to  do  it,  and  I  am  going  to 
say  to  them  :  'Look  here,  boys;  havers  !'  If  they 
say  '  Yes,'  well  and  good.  If  they  say  '  No,'  I'd  like 
to  see  them  get  a  cent  out  of  those  eighty  thousand 
dollars.  I  wish  it  was  morning.  I  shan't  sleep  a 
wink  to-night." 

The  first  person  he  met  as  he  entered  the  hall  was 
his  aunt,  who  seemed  to  be  waiting  for  him.  She 
asked  him  where  he  had  been  passing  tfie  evening, 
and  detecting  the  smell  of  tobacco  smoke,  told  him 
what  he  had  been  doing.  Clarence  pleaded  guilty, 
but  said  that  he  was  homesick  and  had  the  blues ; 
and  when  he  got  that  way,  nothing  did  him  so  much 
good  as  a  lonely  walk  and  a  cigar.  But  he  would 
give  up  the  cigar  now.  He  would  not  smoke  any 
more. 

After  a  short  time  spent  with  the  family  in  music 
and  conversation,  the  boys  all  went  up  stairs  together, 
and  Don  and  Bert  stopped  for  a  few  minutes  in  their 
cousins'  room.  Clarence  thought  this  a  good  oppor- 
tunity to  find  out  some  things  he  wanted  to  know, 
so  he  began  questioning  Don  at  once. 


224  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

"  Whom  do  you  visit  with  here  ?"  said  he.  "Who 
is  your  nearest  neighbor  ?" 

"  0,  we  have  a  large  circle  of  friends,"  replied 
Don.  "  I  don't  wonder  you  think  it  very  lonely 
now ;  but  wait  until  you  have  had  a  chance  to  make 
acquaintances,  and  then  tell  me  what  you  think 
about  it.  Our  nearest  neighbor,  as  you  go  up  the 
river,  is  Colonel  Packard.  He  has  two  lively  boys 
whom  I  think  you  will  like.  In  fact  I  don't  see 
how  you  could  help  it,  for  everybody  likes  them. 
Our  nearest  neighbor,  as  you  go  down  the  river,  is 
Godfrey  Evans." 

"  He's  a  good  one,"  said  Bert. 

"  We  don't  have  much  to  do  with  him  or  his  fam- 
ily," continued  Don,  "and  you  will  know  the  rea- 
son why  when  you  see  them.  We  give  David  our 
dogs  to  break,  because  he  is  a  first-rate  hand,  and  we 
want  to  help  him  along.  He's  got  something  in  him, 
David  has,  but  his  father  and  his  older  brother,  Dan, 
don't  amount  to  much." 

"  Dan !"  thought  Clarence,  becoming  highly  ex- 
cited at  once,  "  I  believe  I  am  on  the  right  track 
already.  The  man  who  was  digging  in  the  field 
called  the  boy  that  was  with  him  '  Dannie.' '  Then 
believing  that  it  might  be  well  for  him  to  know 


THE   BURIED   TREASURE.  225 

something  about  Godfrey  before  he  sought  an  inter- 
view with  him,  he  said  aloud : 

"  How  far  does  this  man  Evans  live  from  here, 
and  what  is  his  business  ?" 

"  He  lives  about  a  mile  down  the  river,  and  has 
no  occupation  at  all,"  answered  Don.  "  He  used  to 
be  in  good  circumstances,  but  having  lost  everything 
he  possessed,  except  his  land,  he  is  too  disheartened 
to  go  to  work  and  put  himself  on  his  feet  again.  He 
spends  a  little  of  his  time  in  hunting,  and  a  good 
deal  more  in  grumbling  at  his  hard  luck.  He  might 
make  a  good  living  for  his  family  with  his  rifle,  if 
he  felt  so  disposed,  for  game  is  abundant,  and  he  is 
a  good  hunter  and  a  capital  shot ;  but  he  is  too  lazy 
to  follow  even  that,  the  laziest  of  all  occupations." 

After  a  few  more  questions  Clarence  learned  so 
much  of  Godfrey's  history,  and  of  his  disposition  and 
habits,  that  he  began  to  think  that  he  was  already 
well  acquainted  with  him  ;  and  besides  Don  described 
him  so  accurately  that  he  could  not  fail  to  recognise 
him  if  he  once  met  him.  This  much  had  been  gained, 
and  now  Clarence  would  have  given  something  if  he 
could  have  learned  more  about  the  property  belonging 
to  the  family  that  was  buried  during  the  war ;  but, 
after  thinking  a  moment,  he  decided  that  it  would 
15 


226  THE   BURIED  TREASURE. 

be  better  for  him  to  say  nothing  at  all  on  this  point. 
He  did  not  want  to  arouse  anybody's  suspicions,  and 
besides,  Godfrey  Evans,  when  he  found  him,  could 
tell  all  he  desired  to  know.  He  wanted  to  go  to  bed 
now  to  think  over  the  good  fortune  that  seemed  almost 
within  his  grasp,  so  he  began  to  yawn  as  if  he  were 
very  sleepy  (if  his  country  cousins  had  been  guilty 
of  such  an  act  he  would  have  pronounced  them  boors 
at  once),  and  Don  and  Bert,  taking  the  hint,  said 
good-night  and  left  the  room. 

The  night  was  as  long  and  dreary  to  Clarence  as 
the  day  had  been,  but  for  a  different  reason.  He 
was  impatient  to  be  up  and  doing,  and  it  seemed  to 
him  that  the  morning  would  never  come.  He  heard 
the  little  clock  on  the  mantel  strike  every  hour  from 
ten  to  five,  and  then  he  jumped  up  because  he  could 
stay  in  bed  no  longer.  He  was  not  called  to  break- 
fast at  six  o'clock,  as  Marshall  had  predicted,  but  the 
meal  was  ready  at  seven,  and  after  they  had  sat  down 
to  it  Clarence,  to  his  great  disgust,  found  that  Don 
and  Bert  had  been  laying  out  some  very  elaborate 
plans  for  the  entertainment  of  himself  and  brother. 
In  the  first  place  it  was  their  intention  to  spend  two 
or  three  days  in  riding  about  the  country,  in  order 
to  give  their  city  relatives  some  idea  of  the  manner 


THE   BURIED    TREASURE.  227 

in  which  the  people  in  the  South  lived,  and  also  to 
make  them  acquainted  with  all  the  young  people  in 
the  neighborhood  who  were  worth  knowing.  Then, 
of  course  the  boys  would  call  on  them,  and  by  the 
time  their  visits  had  been  returned,  they  might  begin 
to  look  for  brant.  When  they  began  to  come  down 
from  the  North,  the  shooting  season  was  close  at 
hand ;  and  if  Clarence  and  Marshall  liked  to  hunt, 
they  would  get  a  party  of  good  fellows  together,  and 
go  <lown  to  the  shooting-box  and  spend  a  week  there. 
"When  they  were  tired  of  that,  they  would  go  'coon- 
hunting  ;  and  when  they  had  seen  all  the  sport  they 
cared  to  see  in  that  way,  they  would  trap  and  shoot 
some  turkeys,  or  drive  the  ridges  for  deer. 

"Yes,"  thought  Clarence,  while  he  listened,  "it 
is  all  very  fine,  no  doubt ;  but  if  you  think  you  are 
going  to  use  up  my  time  in  that  way,  you  have  reck- 
oned without  your  host.  Amusement  indeed  !  What 
pleasure  would  I  see  in  riding  about  the  country 
calling  on  these  natives  ?  What  do  I  care  for  your 
deer  or  turkeys  or  your  shooting-box  ?  I  can't  go, 
at  least  not  to-day,  for  I  have  business  of  my  own  to 
attend  to." 

And  he  didn't  go  either  ;  and,  what  was  more,  he 
gave  such  reasons  for  declining  that  his  cousins, 
although  somewhat  surprised,  readily  let  him  off. 


228  THE    BURIED   TREASURE. 

lie  was  much  too  homesick  to  be  any  company  dur- 
ing a  ride,  he  said,  and  all  he  wanted  was  to  go  off 
somewhere  and  be  alone.  lie  would  be  himself  in  a 
day  or  two,  and  when  he  felt  more  like  mingling 
with  people,  he  would  be  quite  at  the  service  of  his 
cousins,  Don  and  Bert.  The  latter  expressed  their 
regrets,  but  readily  accepted  his  excuses,  and  Clarence, 
after  making  some  inquiries  of  Don,  calculated  to 
draw  out  information  on  a  few  points  on  which  he 
wished  to  be  posted,  went  up  to  his  room  to  prepare 
himself  for  his  interview  with  Godfrey  Evans.  When 
he  came  down  again  he  wore  a  neat  hunting-suit, 
and  carried  a  light  Ballard  rifle  on  his  shoulder. 
Don,  who  met  him  in  the  hall,  opened  his  eyes  in 
surprise,  and  went  into  ecstacies  over  the  handsome 
little  breech-loader  which  Clarence  presented  for  his 
inspection. 

"  I  didn't  know  that  you  city  fellows  ever  had  an 
opportunity  to  use  such  things  as  this,"  said  Don, 
bringing  tbe  weapon  to  his  shoulder,  and  glancing 
along  the  clean,  brown  barrel. 

"  0,  yes,  we  do,"  said  Clarence.  "  Rifle-shooting 
is  becoming  quite  fashionable  now-a-days,  and  I  used 
to  spend  an  hour  or  two  every  evening  at  the  gallery. 
I  can  make  forty-five  out  of  a  possible  fifty  almost 
any  time." 


THE   BURIED    TREASURE.  229 

This  was  Greek  to  Don,  who,  however,  did  not 
ask  any  questions,  for  Clarence  had  so  pompous  a 
way  of  giving  information  and  looked  so  surprised 
when  any  one  asked  him  to  explain  his  meaning,  that 
Don  did  not  like  to  show  his  ignorance.  He  handed 
the  rifle  back  to  his  cousin  and  saw  him  walk  out  of 
the  house,  pass  through  the  gate,  and  turn  down  the 
road  that  led  to  Godfrey  Evans's  cabin. 

We  have  already  told  what  sort  of  a  reception  he 
met  at  Godfrey's  hands,  and  have  also  described  what 
he  did  to  bring  himself  to  the  notice  of  that  gentle- 
man. He  knew  Godfrey  as  soon  as  he  put  his  eyes 
on  him.  He  studied  the  man's  face  closely,  and 
being  satisfied  with  the  opinion  he  formed,  easily 
induced  him  to  accompany  him  into  the  woods.  He 
wanted  to  talk  freely  with  him  without  running  any 
risk  of  being  overheard,  but  he  hardly  knew  how  to 
begin  the  conversation.  He  wanted  to  make  a  friend 
of  his  new  acquaintance  and  gain  his  confidence,  and 
in  order  to  do  that,  he  must  be  careful  how  he  went 
to  work.  The  pipe  Godfrey  had  lost  the  night 
before,  and  which  Clarence  had  brought  with  him  in 
his  game-bag,  served  him  a  good  turn.  In  attempting 
to  produce  the  cigars,  he  accidentally  pulled  out  the 
pipe  also.  Godfrey  recognised  it,  and  so  amazed 
was  he  to  see  his  property,  which  he  imagined  he 


230  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

had  lost  beyond  recovery,  in  the  possession  of  an 
entire  stranger,  that  he  betrayed  himself  at  once. 
After  that  it  was  no  trouble  for  Clarence  to  open 
conversation  with  him  about  the  buried  treasure,  and 
neither  did  he  experience  any  difficulty  in  persuading 
Godfrey  to  accept  him  as  an  assistant  in  the  place 
of  Dan.  Clarence  learned  to  his  great  surprise  and 
amusement  that  he  had  been  the  innocent  cause  of 
Godfrey's  hasty  stampede  on  the  previous  night,  and 
it  was  all  he  could  do  to  refrain  from  laughing  out- 
right at  the  man's  description  of  the  "  haunt "  he 
had  seen.  We  have  also  told  what  arrangements  the 
worthy  pair  made  in  regard  to  prosecuting  the  search 
and  dividing  the  spoils  after  the  barrel  was  found, 
and  we  know  that  when  the  interview  was  ended 
Clarence  went  home  happy  in  the  belief  that  he  would 
soon  be  a  rich  man,  and  that  no  one  under  his  uncle's 
roof,  not  even  his  brother  Marshall,  would  be  the 
wiser  for  it.  No  one  was  the  wiser  for  it  then,  but 
there  was  one  who  found  out  all  about  it  a  few  hours 
later,  and  who  interfered  with  his  project  in  a  manner 
so  unexpected  and  effectual,  that  he  not  only  put  a 
stop  to  all  efforts  to  find  the  money,  but  also  came 
very  near  driving  all  the  negroes  off  the  plantation, 
and  causing  General  Gordon  the  greatest  trouble  and 
inconvenience. 


THE   BURIED   TREASURE.  231 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

DON'S   EXPERIMENT. 

V\7"HEN  Clarence  reached  home  after  his  interview 
with  Godfrey  Evans,  lie  found  the  house 
deserted  by  all  the  family  save  his  aunt  Mary.  His 
brother,  his  uncle  and  all  his  cousins  had  gone  off  in 
the  carriage  to  spend  the  day  in  riding  about  the 
country,  and  Clarence  was  left  to  amuse  himself  in 
any  way  he  thought  proper.  He  knew  the  time 
would  not  hang  heavily  on  his  hands,  for  he  had 
much  to  think  about.  He  wanted  to  make  up  his 
mind  just  what  ho  would  do  when  he  came  into  pos- 
session of  his  share  of  the  eighty  thousand  dollars. 
The  thought  that  possibly  he  might  never  get  a  cent 
of  it — that  perhaps  there  was  no  barrel  hidden  in 
the  potato-patch — did  not  once  enter  his  head.  The 
hope  that  it  might  be  there,  and  that  he  might  be 
fortunate  enough  to  find  it,  was  so  strong  that  it 
became  belief,  and  Clarence  already  considered  him- 
self as  good  as  rich. 


232  THE    BURIED   TREASURE. 

Under  pretence  of  writing  a  letter  to  his  mother 
to  tell  her  of  his  safe  arrival  at  the  plantation,  he 
went  up  stairs,  where  he  passed  the  rest  of  the  after- 
noon. He  made  a  very  hasty  toilet,  spent  about  five 
minutes  in  writing  the  letter — he  did  not  ask  hia 
mother  for  money — as  he  had  expected  to  do — and 
then  gave  himself  up  to  his  meditations.  He  was 
sorry  when  his  brother  and  the  rest  came  back  from 
their  ride,  for  after  that  he  could  no  longer  make  a 
hermit  of  himself.  He  was  obliged  to  go  down  and 
mingle  with  the  family,  which  he  did  with  a  very  bad 
grace. 

While  they  were  at  the  supper-table  something 
was  said  about  the  letter  he  had  written,  and  Don 
volunteered  to  take  it  to  the  office  that  very  night, 
so  that  it  might  go  out  with  the  first  mail  that  left 
the  landing,  and  requested  Clarence  to  accompany 
him  on  horseback — an  invitation  which  the  latter, 
owing  to  his  agreement  with  Godfrey  Evans,  was 
obliged  to  dedine.  So  Don  said  he  would  go  alone, 
and  promised  to  be  back  shortly  after  dark,  and  in 
time  to  practise  some  duets  with  Clarence  on  the 
flute. 

"  Duets !"  thought  Clarence,  in  great  disgust. 
"  Some  people  have  queer  ideas  of  enjoyment.  Music 


THE    BURIED    TREASURE.  233 

is  getting  to  be  the  biggest  bore  in  the  world  to  me 
since  I  came  here,  and  I  wish  I  had  never  learned  it. 
If  anybody  will  give  me  two  cents,  I'll  take  that 
flute  of  mine  and  smash  it  over  a  chair.  It  cost  me 
thirty-five  dollars,  too.  I  can  spend  my  time  to-night 
much  more  profitably  than  in  practising  duets.  What 
if  we  should  happen  to  alight  on  the  barrel  the  very 
first  time  trying  ?  Whew !  It  is  too  exciting  to 
think  about !" 

Don  rode  down  to  the  landing  and  back  alone, 
reaching  the  barn  about  half  an  hour  after  dark. 
Finding  that  the  hostler  was  not  there  to  take  care 
of  his  pony,  he  attended  to  the  animal  himself,  work- 
ing in  the  dark,  as  there  was  no  lantern  nearer  than 
the  house,  and  he  did  not  want  to  take  time  to  go 
after  it.  lie  hung  up  his  saddle  and  bridle,  and  was 
about  to  close  the  barn-doors,  when  he  happened  to 
look  toward  the  house  and  saw  a  figure  darting  along 
the  carriage-way,  making  use  of  every  tree  and  clump 
of  bushes  to  conceal  his  movements,  and  stopping 
now  and  then  to  look  about,  as  if  he  were  afraid  of 
being  seen  by  somebody.  Don  took  just  one  glance 
at  him,  and  then  drawing  back  behind  the  door,  laid 
hold  of  a  pitchfork  that  was  always  kept  standing  in 
the  corner.  Thieves  visited  the  plantation  now  and 


234  THE    BURIED   TREASURE. 

then  after  dark,  and  Don  thought  he  had  discovered 
one  of  them. 

"  That  fellow  is  up  to  something,"  said  he,  as  he 
tightened  his  grasp  on  the  pitchfork,  "  and  if  I  keep 
an  eye  on  him,  perhaps  I  shall  find  out  where  our 
chickens  and  hams  go  so  mysteriously.  It  must  be 
some  one  who  is  acquainted  with  the  dogs,  or  they 
•would  have  raised  a  fuss  hefore  this  time.  Let  him 
pick  up  something,  if  he  dares,  and  we'll  see  how 
quickly  he  will  drop  it,  when  he  finds  the  tines  of 
this  pitchfork  within  an  inch  of  his  nose." 

Fairly  trembling  with  excitement  Don  took  off  his 
hat,  peeped  cautiously  around  the  edge  of  the  door, 
and  watched  the  motions  of  the  supposed  thief.  The 
latter  did  not  pick  up  anything,  however,  as  Don 
hoped  he  would,  but  took  his  stand  at  the  corner  of 
the  barn,  almost  within  reach  of  the  boy's  hand,  and 
leaning  against  the  building,  looked  down  the  road 
as  if  he  were  waiting  for  somebody.  Then  Don  saw, 
to  his  great  surprise,  that  it  was  his  cousin  Clarence, 
lie  was  about  to  step  out  and  speak  to  him,  when  he 
noticed  that  Clarence  held  a  lighted  cigar  in  his 
hand. 

"  Perhaps  I  had  better  stay  where  I  am,"  thought 
Don.  "  If  I  go  out  there,  he'll  think  I  have  been 


THE   BURIED   TREASURE.  235 

watching  him  and  playing  the  part  of  a  spy ;  and 
then  if  father  or  mother  should  happen  to  say  any- 
thing to  him  about  his  smoking,  he  would  accuse  me 
of  telling  it.  I  wish  he  would  go  somewhere  else 
and  enjoy  his  cigar,  and  let  me  go  into  the  house  !" 
While  Don  was  soliloquising  in  this  way,  Clarence 
suddenly  darted  off  as  if  he  had  just  thought  of  some- 
thing, and  making  his  way  to  one  of  the  evergreens 
in  the  yard,  drew  from  beneath  its  low,  spreading 
branches  a  couple  of  shovels,  with  which  he  again 
approached  the  barn.  Don  looked  on  in  great  won- 
der, and,  forgetting  the  resolution  he  had  just  formed, 
was  about  to  reveal  himself  to  his  cousin,  when  the 
creaking  of  the  gate  announced  a  new  arrival.  It 
proved  to  be  Godfrey  Evans,  who  was  at  once  taken 
to  task  by  Clarence  for  his  long  delay.  To  Don's 
amazement  the  two  seemed  as  familiar  as  though  they 
had  long  been  acquainted.  The  question,  Where  had 
Clarence  met  Godfrey  before,  and  what  in  the  world 
could  he  have  to  do  with  that  worthless  man  ?  was 
hardly  formed  in  Don's  mind  before  it  was  answered, 
not  fully,  of  course,  but  still  in  a  way  to  increase  his 
surprise  a  thousandfold,  and  to  give  him,  besides,  a 
pretty  good  idea  of  the  situation.  He  overheard  every 
word  of  the  conversation  that  took  place  between  them 


236  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

and  found  that  they  had  met  there  by  appointment ; 
that  it  was  their  purpose  to  dig  up  a  barrel  of  gold 
and  silver  that  was  supposed  to  be  buried  in  the 
potato-patch  ;  and  that  Godfrey  was  very  much  afraid 
to  undertake  the  task,  for  fear  that  old  Jordan's 
ghost  might  appear  and  frighten  him  away.  Don 
also  inferred,  from  something  Godfrey  said,  that  he 
had  already  seen  the  ghost  once,  and  that  a  second 
view  would  be  altogether  too  much  for  him.  After 
spending  five  minutes  in  discussing  the  matter,  Clar- 
ence succeeded  in  infusing  a  little  courage  into  God- 
frey, who  accepted  one  of  the  shovels  and  led  the 
way  towards  the  potato-patch. 

When  the  two  had  disappeared  in  the  darkness, 
Don  set  the  pitchfork  back  in  its  place,  and  drew  a 
long  breath — the  first  full  inspiration  he  had  taken 
for  the  last  ten  minutes.  He  had  been  so  close  to 
the  conspirators  all  the  time  that  he  hardly  dared  to 
move  a  finger,  for  fear  that  he  should  attract  their 
attention. 

"  Well,  I  wonder  if  anybody  ever  heard  of  such  a 
thing  as  this  before  !"  said  he,  drawing  his  hand- 
kerchief across  his  forehead.  "  If  I  didn't  have  the 
evidence  of  my  own  eyes  and  ears,  I  shouldn't  believe 
it.  Who  told  them  about  the  barrel,  I  wonder ! 


THE   BURIED   TREASURE.  237 

I've  heard  mother  say  that  old  Jordan  buried  a  lot  of 
silver- ware,  such  as  knives,  forks  and  spoons,  for  her 
during  the  war,  but  I  thought  she  had  got  the  most 
of  it  back  again.  I  never  heard  her  say  she  lost  a 
whole  barrelful,  and  I  don't  believe  she  did.  The 
only  money  that  was  ever  buried  on  this  plantation, 
was  fifteen  hundred  dollars  in  gold,  and  that  was 
hidden  under  the  front  steps  of  the  old  house.  I've 
seen  the  place  a  hundred  times.  But  eighty  thousand 
dollars  !  My  stars  !  I  don't  believe  father  ever  had 
so  much  money  at  one  time  in  his  life.  But  suppose 
it  was  there,  and  Clarence  should  find  it ;  it  isn't 
possible  that  he  would  be  dishonest  enough  to  keep 
it.  I  shouldn't  like  to  think  that  my  own  cousin 
was  so  great  a  rascal.  Hold  on  !  I've  just  thought 
of  a  trick  that  will  beat  the  hollow  pumpkin  all  to 
pieces." 

Talking  thus  to  himself,  Don  carefully  closed  and 
locked  the  stable-door,  and  with  noiseless  footsteps 
stole  along  the  fence  until  he  arrived  opposite  the 
place  where  Clarence  and  Godfrey  were  at  work  in 
the  field.  He  could  see  them  plainly,  for  they  were 
but  a  few  yards  from  the  fence,  and  as  he  watched 
them  it  was  all  he  could  do  to  keep  from  giving  a 
few  dismal  groans,  just  to  see  what  effect  the  sound 


238  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

would  have  upon  them.  The  only  thing  that  re- 
strained him  was  the  fear  that  by  so  doing  he  would 
interfere  with  the  plans  he  had  suddenly  formed, 
and  which  he  intended  to  put  into  operation  the  very 
next  day.  He  did  not  want  to  frighten  Godfrey 
away  from  the  potato-patch  just  then.  He  wanted 
him  to  come  again  the  next  night,  and  by  that  time 
he  would  be  ready  to  show  him  something.  He 
stayed  in  the  fence-corner  for  half  an  hour  ;  and  then 
knowing  that  if  he  remained  there  any  longer,  his 
absence  would  be  certain  to  attract  the  attention  of 
the  family,  and  perhaps  lead  to  more  questions  from 
his  father  and  mother  than  he  would  care  to  answer, 
he  arose  and  stole  away  toward  the  house 

"  Have  you  seen  anything  of  Clarence  ?"  was  the 
first  question  his  cousin  Marshall  asked  him,  after  he 
had  distributed  the  mail  he  brought  from  the  post- 
office. 

"  Yes,  I  saw  him.    He's  out  there,"  was  the  reply. 

"  Out  there  !"  replied  the  general.     "  Out  where  ?" 

"  Out  near  the  barn  when  I  first  saw  him,"  said 
Don  ;  and  to  himself  he  added :  "  I  suppose  I  ought 
to  tell  now  where  he  was  the  last  time  I  saw  him, 
but  that  would  never  do.  I  don't  want  to  get  my 
cousin  into  trouble,  and  neither  do  I  want  to  spoil 


THE   BURIED   TREASURE.  239 

all  my  fun.  Won't  I  have  things  fixed  for  Godfrey 
to-morrow  night,  though  ?  I'll  scare  him  so  that  he 
will  never  put  his  foot  on  the  plantation  again  !" 

"  I  don't  wonder  that  the  time  hangs  heavily  on 
his  hands,"  continued  the  general.  "Our  quiet 
country  life  probably  has  no  charms  for  him,  and  he 
is  lonely  and  homesick." 

This  seemed  to  be  the  verdict  of  all  the  members 
of  the  family,  who,  being  willing  to  make  due  allow- 
ances and  give  their  city  relative  all  the  privileges 
he  demanded,  said  no  more  about  his  absence.  They 
welcomed  him  very  cordially  when  he  came  in,  two 
hours  later,  but  asked  him  no  questions.  Indeed, 
Clarence  did  not  wait  to  be  questioned.  He  went  to 
bed  almost  immediately,  and  Don  soon  followed  him. 

The  next  day  the  general  went  off  somewhere  on 
business,  and  the  boys  were  left  to  amuse  themselves 
in  any  way  they  pleased.  Bert  and  Marshall  got 
into  one  of  the  canoes  and  set  off  to  visit  the  shooting- 
box.  They  asked  Don  and  Clarence  to  go  with 
them ;  but  the  latter  could  not  see  that  there  was  any 
fun  in  riding  a  mile  or  two  in  a  leaky  dug-out  for  the 
purpose  of  looking  at  an  old  shantee  in  the  woods, 
and  Don  had  other  business  on  hand,  so  neither  of 
them  accepted  the  invitation.  Clarence  found  the 


240  THE    BURIED   TREASURE. 

most  pleasure  in  getting  away  by  himself  and  think- 
ing about  the  fortune  of  which  he  expected  very  soon 
to  be  the  master,  while  Don  wanted  to  spend  at 
least  a  portion  of  the  forenoon  in  getting  ready  to 
receive  Godfrey  Evans  when  he  came  to  the  potato- 
patch  that  night ;  and  as  they  both  desired  to  be 
alone,  they  did  not  in  any  way  interfere  with  each 
other. 

As  soon  as  Clarence  could  find  an  excuse  for  so 
doing,  he  went  up  stairs  to  his  room  ;  and  Don, 
being  left  to  himself,  managed  to  secure  a  rusty  key 
which  hung  on  a  nail  in  the  kitchen,  and  to  effect  an 
entrance  into  a  long-unused  room  in  the  rear  of  the 
barn ;  and  he  performed  both  these  necessary  opera- 
tions without  attracting  the  attention  of  any  one. 

As  soon  as  he  had  locked  the  door  behind  him 
Don  breathed  easier,  and  stopped  to  look  about  him. 
The  room  had  once  belonged  to  old  Jordan,  the  run- 
away negro,  who  had  served  as  the  general's  hostler 
in  the  days  gone  by.  Being  a  very  faithful  and  a 
favorite  servant,  he  had  received  many  favors,  and 
was  also  allowed  the  privilege  of  a  room  to  himself. 
The  apartment  looked  just  as  it  did  on  the  day  the 
sable  occupant  deserted  it.  Not  a  thing  had  been 
disturbed,  and  Don  was  the  only  one  who  had  entered 


THE    BURIED    TREASURE.  241 

the  room  since  the  morning  following  the  day  on 
which  the  levee  was  cut.  When  Mrs.  Gordon  became 
satisfied  that  old  Jordan  had  run  away,  she  gave 
instructions  that  the  room  should  be  closed  and 
locked  and  the  window  nailed  down,  so  that  nobody 
could  enter  it.  Jordan  would  be  sure  to  come  back 
some  day,  she  said,  and  when  he  did,  he  would  find 
his  property  secure,  and  his  room  waiting  for  him. 
But  the  years  had  gone  by,  the  old  fellow  had  never 
been  heard  from,  and  everybody  began  to  think  he 
was  dead. 

The  first  thing  Don  did,  after  locking  the  door 
behind  him,  was  to  take  from  his  pocket  a  small  bun- 
dle, which  being  undone  proved  to  contain  a  brush 
and  a  box  of  blacking.  His  next  move  was  to  open 
a  huge  chest  that  stood  at  the  head  of  the  bed.  In 
it  he  found  four  articles  he  needed — a  suit  of  clothes 
neatly  folded  up ;  a  gaudily-colored  handkerchief ; 
a  shining  plug  hat,  that  had  once  been  the  property  of 
the  general ;  and  a  pair  of  heavy  plantation  shoes, 
like  those  which  used  to  be  so  extensively  manufac- 
tured in  New  England  under  the  name  of  "  russets." 
The  fifth  article  Don  needed  to  complete  the  disguise 
he  was  about  to  assume  was  a  walking-stick,  and 

that  stood  in  the  corner  behind  the  chest. 
16 


242  THE  BURIED   TREASURE. 

Having  selected  everything  he  wanted,  Don 
quickly  divested  himself  of  his  outer  clothing,  and  in 
two  minutes  more  had  put  on  old  Jordan's  Sunday 
suit,  which  fitted  him  well  enough  for  all  practical 
purposes.  The  shoes  were  much  too  large,  but  by 
putting  a  roll  of  paper  in  the  toe  of  each,  he  found 
that  he  could  walk  in  them  very  well.  He  wrapped 
the  handkerchief  about  his  head,  leaving  the  ends 
hanging  down  behind,  and  taking  care  to  cover  up 
all  his  hair  so  that  no  one  could  see  it,  and  placed 
the  plug  hat  on  the  top  of  it.  Then  the  blacking 
brush,  and  the  three-cornered  piece  of  looking  glass 
that  was  nailed  against  the  wall,  came  into  use,  and 
in  a  few  minutes  more  Don  had  made  such  a  change 
in  his  appearance  that  his  own  father  would  not  have 
recognised  him. 

"  I  wish  I  had  some  of  that  burnt  cork,  or  what- 
ever it  is,  that  the  minstrels  use  to  blacken  their 
faces,"  said  the  boy,  glancing  into  the  little  mirror 
after  he  had  finished  his  work.  "  My  white  skin 
.shows  through  almost  too  much.  But,  after  all,  who 
cares  for  that?  It  will  be  dark  when  I  present 
myself  to  Godfrey,  and  I  shall  have  no  need  to  be  so 
very  particular  about  my  hands  and  face.  I  say  ! 
this  is  going  to  a  good  deal  of  trouble  for  a  little  fun, 


THE   BURIED   TREASURE.  243 

isn't  it  ?  No  matter ;  if  I  can  see  Godfrey  run  as 
he  did  on  the  night  he  saw  the  pumpkin  with  the 
lighted  candle  in  it,  I  shall  be  well  repaid." 

Don  could  remember  old  Jordan  very  well,  for, 
although  he  was  young  when  the  latter  went  away, 
his  peculiar  actions  and  odd  style  of  dress  had  made 
a  lasting  impression  on  him.  Besides,  he  had  heard 
him  described  time  and  again ;  and  his  sayings  had 
been  so  often  repeated,  and  his  style  of  locomotion  so 
frequently  imitated  by  those  who  knew  him,  that 
Don  thought  he  should  have  no  difficulty  in  passing 
himself  off  for  old  Jordan.  Now  that  he  was  dressed 
and  ready  for  the  performance,  he  thought  it  would 
be  a  great  pity  to  assume  his  own  character  again 
before  he  had  tested  his  disguise. 

This  thought  had  no  sooner  suggested  itself  to  him 
than  he  prepared  to  act  upon  it.  Everything  favored 
him.  The  door  of  the  room,  opening  as  it  did  into 
a  narrow  passage-way  that  led  from  the  barn  into 
the  corn-crib,  was  out  of  sight  of  anybody  who  might 
happen  to  be  on  the  barn  floor.  The  only  difficult 
thing  for  him  to  do,  was  to  get  out  of  the  passage-way 
without  being  seen.  That  being  accomplished  he  did 
not  care  who  saw  him — provided,  of  course,  that  the 


244  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

members  of  the  family  kept  out  of  the  way — for  no 
one  could  tell  where  he  came  from. 

"  But  I  must  first  make  sure  of  a  way  of  retreat," 
thought  Don,  as  he  looked  about  the  room  for  some- 
thing with  which  to  draw  the  nails  that  held  the 
window.  "  I  must  get  back  into  this  room,  somehow, 
and  it  may  not  be  quite  safe  to  get  back  the  same 
way  I  go  out." 

But  Don  could  not  find  a  hammer  or  anything  else 
to  draw  the  nails  with,  so  he  broke  them  off  by  pry- 
ing them  up  and  down  with  the  end  of  his  walking- 
stick.  Then  he  raised  the  window,  placing  a  stick 
under  it  to  keep  it  open,  and  unhooked  the  shutter 
which  fitted  tightly  enough  to  remain  closed,  even 
when  it  was  not  fastened.  After  that  he  looked  into 
the  mirror  again,  touched  up  one  or  two  white  spots 
on  his  hands  and  face,  grasped  his  walking-stick, 
and  slipped  out  into  the  passage-way.  Locking  the 
door  he  put  the  key  into  his  pocket,  and  moved  cau- 
tiously down  the  passage-way  until  he  could  look 
into  the  barn. 

There  was  no  one  there  except  the  hostler,  and  he 
was  busy  and  his  back  was  turned  toward  Don. 
Moving  with  noiseless  footsteps,  the  boy  succeeded 
in  walking  out  into  the  middle  of  the  floor  before  ne 


THE   BURIED   TREASURE  245 

was  discovered.  He  did  not  expect  to  be  recognised 
by  the  hostler,  for  the  latter  was  a  new  hand  who 
had  never  been  acquainted  with  Jordan ;  but  there 
were  some  negroes  at  work  in  the  field  close  by  who 
knew  the  old  fellow  he  was  now  personating,  and 
toward  them  Don  directed  his  course. 

The  hostler  looked  up  from  his  work  when  he 
heard  the  sound  of  footsteps  behind  him,  and  seeing 
a  strange  negro  approaching,  spoke  to  him  very  civ- 
illy ;  but  Don  took  no  notice  of  him.  He  was  play- 
ing ghost  now,  and  ghosts  did  not  speak  to  anybody — • 
at  least  he  had  never  heard  that  they  did.  Walking 
straight  out  of  the  door  he  turned  toward  the  place 
where  the  negroes  were  at  work,  and  had  not  made 
many  steps  before  one  of  them  discovered  him.  He 
straightened  up  quickly,  shaded  his  eyes  with  his 
hand,  and  said  a  few  words  in  a  low  tone  to  his 
companions,  who  also  turned  and  looked  at  Don. 
They  gazed  fixedly  at  him  for  a  moment,  and  then 
broke  out  into  a  chorus  of  greeting. 

"  Bress  my  soul  an'  body,  if  dar  ain't  ole  uncle 
Jordan  !"  they  exclaimed  in  concert. 

"  It's  all  right,"  thought  Don.  "  If  they  can't 
recognise  me  in  the  daytime,  I  am  sure  Godfrey 
Evans  will  not  know  me  in  the  dark.  I  believe  if 


246  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

I  should  go  into  the  house  I  could  fool  everybody 
there." 

Scarcely  able  to  control  himself,  so  great  was  his 
desire  to  laugh,  Don  kept  straight  on  toward  the 
negroes,  who  had  dropped  their  hoes  and  were  hurry- 
ing up  to  shake  hands  with  him.  His  silence  seemed 
to  surprise  them  greatly.  They  stopped  short,  looked 
curiously  at  him  first,  then  suspiciously,  and  after 
exchanging  a  few  words  that  Don  could  not  hear, 
began  backing  out  of  his  way. 

"  'Tain't  ole  Jordan,  nudder,"  suddenly  exclaimed 
one  of  the  negroes. 

"  0,  hush  yer  noise,  boy,"  said  another.  "  Don't  I 
know  dot  ole  white  coat,  an'  dot  plug  hat  dot  ole 
marse  guv  him  on  dot  Christmas  day,  jest  'fore  he 
went  away  to  de  wah  ?  Yes,  I  does." 

"No  odds,"  replied  the  one  who  had  first  spoken. 
"  'Tain't  ole  Jordan.  He's  dead,  an'  dis  is  his  haunt." 
These  words  were  all  that  were  needed  to  frighten 
the  superstitious  field-hands  almost  out  of  their  senses. 
They  did  not  go  into  a  panic  and  run,  as  Don  hoped 
they  would,  but  retreated  out  of  his  way  and  watched 
him  from  a  distance,  looking  at  one  another  now  and 
then,  and  shaking  their  heads  and  acting  altogether 
as  if  they  were  at  their  wits'  end.  Don  took  a  short 


THE    BURIED   TREASURE.  247 

turn  about  the  field — he  did  not  dare  to  stay  out 
there  very  long  for  fear  of  being  seen  by  somebody 
in  the  house — and  then  turned  toward  the  barn  again. 
As  soon  as  the  corn-crib  hid  him  from  the  gaze  of 
the  negroes,  he  straightened  up  and  ran  swiftly  to  the 
window  that  opened  into  old  Jordan's  room.  Throw- 
ing back  the  shutter  he  scrambled  through  as  quickly 
as  he  could,  and  shutting  himself  in,  laid  down  on 
old  Jordan's  bed  and  shook  all  over  with  suppressed 
laughter.  He  heard  the  footsteps  and  the  voices  of 
the  negroes  as  they  passed  around  the  barn,  looking 
for  him;  and  the  few  words  of  their  conversation 
which  he  overheard  satisfied  him  that  his  experi- 
ment had  been  a  decided  success.  He  must  have 
imitated  old  Jordan  perfectly  to  be  taken  for  him  in 
broad  daylight. 


248  THE    BURIED    TREASURE. 


CHAPTER  XV. 

A  JOKE  THAT  WAS  NO  JOKE. 

~VT7~E  have  already  described  the  other  tests  to 
•which  Don  put  his  disguise  during  the  fore- 
noon, and  we  know  that  every  one  who  saw  him 
believed  him  to  be  old  Jordan's  ghost.  Godfrey, 
especially,  was  greatly  alarmed,  and  Don  had  the 
satisfaction  of  seeing  him  run,  which  was  a  sight 
worth  going  miles  to  behold.  The  magical  manner 
in  which  he  appeared  and  vanished,  was  very  be- 
wildering to  all  who  witnessed  it;  but  it  would  have 
been  no  mystery  at  all,  had  they  been  aware  that  the 
window  that  led  into  old  Jordan's  room  was  un- 
fastened. As  they  could  see  nothing  of  Don  after 
he  went  behind  the  corn-crib,  they  naturally  concluded 
that  he  had  vanished  into  thin  air.  In  no  other  way 
could  they  account  for  his  disappearance. 

Don  had  wasted  a  good  deal  of  time  in  these  ex- 
periments, and  now  the  ringing  of  the  dinner-bell 
admonished  him  that  he  must  pull  off  his  disguise, 


THE    BURIED   TREASURE.  249 

and  hurry  back  to  the  house.  Another  thing  that 
warned  him  to  make  haste,  was  the  knowledge  that 
he  had  thrown  the  negroes  into  a  state  of  great  ex- 
citement and  alarm.  He  was  afraid  they  might  tell 
his  parents  what  they  had  seen,  and  that  would  bring 
about  an  investigation. 

1  'It  would  never  do  to  be  caught  in  the  act," 
thought  Don,  as  he  hastily  pulled  off  old  Jordan's 
clothes  and  bundled  them  into  the  chest.  "  I  don't 
know  what  father  would  say  to  me.  Bnt  didn't 
Godfrey  run,  though  ?  I  declare  it  seems  selfish  for 
me  to  enjoy  all  this  fun  by  myself.  I  wish  I  had 
some  good  fellow  to  help  me  laugh  !" 

Don  stopped  for  a  few  minutes  to  indulge  in  a  very 
hearty  but  silent  fit  of  merriment,  and  then  having 
put  on  his  clothes,  and  wiped  the  black  off  his  hands 
and  face  with  a  damp  cloth  which  he  had  taken  the 
precaution  to  bring  with  him,  he  glanced  about  the 
room  to  make  sure  that  he  had  left  everything  just 
as  he  had  found  it,  and  went  out,  locking  the  door 
behind  him.  He  reached  the  house  and  made  his 
way  to  his  room  without  being  seen,  and  having  per- 
formed a  hasty  toilet,  went  down  to  the  dining-room 
in  time  to  learn  that  the  measures  he  had  taken  to 
frighten  Godfrey  Evans,  had  succeeded  almost  too 


250  THE    BURIED   TREASURE. 

well.  One  of  the  servant  girls  was  standing  at  the 
door  showing  a  good  deal  of  the  whites  of  her  eyes, 
and  looking  altogether  as  if  she  were  highly  excited 
about  something. 

"  It's  all  nonsense,  Jane,"  Don  heard  his  mother 
say. 

"No  odds,  missus,"  replied  the  girl.  "Sam  say 
he  can't  hitch  up  dem  hosses  no  mo'.  He  wouldn't 
go  nigh  dat  barn,  he  say,  fur  no  money  in  dis  broad 
world.  He  done  seed  it,  suah." 

Don,  well  knowing  what  it  was  that  the  girl  re- 
ferred to,  and  hardly  able  to  control  himself,  so  great 
was  his  desire  to  laugh,  glanced  about  the  table  to 
see  what  the  family  thought  about  it.  They  were 
all  there,  and  their  faces  expressed  the  greatest 
astonishment.  Even  the  general  elevated  his  eye- 
brows, and  turned  about  in  his  chair  to  look  at  the 
girl.  Don  sat  down  in  his  place  and  tried  to  look  as 
surprised  as  the  rest  did ;  and  then  recollecting  that 
he  had  yet  seen  or  heard  nothing  to  be  surprised  at, 
he  asked : 

"  What's  the  matter  ?" 

"  Why,  mother  just  sent  out  word  to  Sam  to  hitch 
up  the  horses,"  said  Bert,  "and  he  sent  back  word 
that  he  couldn't  think  of  it." 


THE   BURIED   TREASURE.  251 

"  Why  not  ?"  inquired  Don. 

"  0,  because  he's  got  it  into  his  head  that  there's 
something  out  there — something  that  looks  like  old 
Jordan." 

"  Never  mind,  Jane.  I  will  look  into  the  matter 
after  dinner,"  said  the  general. 

The  girl  disappeared,  and  the  family  being  left 
alone,  devoted  themselves  to  the  viands  before  them 
and  to  discussing  the  strange  incidents  that  were 
reported  to  have  happened  at  the  barn  during  the 
forenoon.  Don  found  that,  for  a  wonder,  the  story 
of  his  exploits  had  been  told  without  the  exaggeration 
common  in  such  cases,  but,  to  keep  up  appearances, 
he  was  obliged  to  feign  ignorance,  and  inquire  par- 
ticularly into  things.  Bert  and  his  mother  declared 
that  it  was  all  moonshine — that  the  hostler  had  not 
seen  anything ;  but  the  general  was  pretty  well  con- 
vinced that  something  had  happened,  and  that  an 
investigation  would  not  be  out  of  place.  It  was  a 
wonder  that  no  one  suspected  Don,  and  perhaps  the 
reason  was  because  he  looked  so  innocent. 

The  investigation  came  off  immediately  after  din- 
ner, but  nothing  new  was  brought  to  light.  The 
hostler  told  his  story  in  a  straightforward  manner 
and  produced  his  witnesses  to  prove  what  he  said  ; 


252  THE    BURIED   TREASURE. 

and  so  positive  were  they  all  that  they  had  seen  Jor- 
dan's haunt  about  the  barn  but  a  few  hours  before, 
that  the  general  began  to  think  that  perhaps  the  old 
fellow  had  returned  after  his  long  absence,  but,  for 
some  reason  which  he  could  not  explain,  was  keeping 
himself  as  close  as  possible.  The  general  tried  to 
laugh  the  matter  off  at  first,  but  soon  found  that  it 
was  much  too  serious  for  that ;  and  his  face  assumed 
an  expression  of  trouble  and  anxiety  when  he  found 
that  the  field  hands,  one  and  all,  had  sent  him  word 
by  the  hostler  that  when  night  came,  they  would 
call  on  him  for  the  money  that  was  due  them. 

"  I  am  really  afraid  I  have  made  a  mess  of  it," 
thought  Don,  when  he  heard  this.  "  I  had  no  idea 
that  I  was  going  to  scare  everybody  so  badly,  and  I 
wish  now  I  hadn't  done  it.  No  matter,  it  will  soon 
be  over  now.  I'll  frighten  Godfrey  to-night,  if  he 
comes  after  that  barrel,  and  then  I'll  never  play  old 
Jordan  again !" 

The  general  looked  grave  and  seemed  greatly 
perplexed,  and  so  did  Mrs.  Gordon  ;  while  the  boys, 
Don  among  the  rest,  declared  that  there  must  be 
some  explanation  for  the  strange  things  that  had 
happened  in  the  barn  that  morning,  and  spent  the 
rest  of  the  day  in  trying  to  clear  away  the  mystery. 


THE    BURIED    TREASURE.  253 

They  looked  in  every  place,  except  the  one  in  which 
they  would  have  been  the  most  likely  to  find  some 
clue  to  aid  them  in  their  search,  and  hunted  for  every- 
thing except  the  right  one.  They  all  believed  now 
— all  except  Don,  of  course — that  old  Jordan  had 
come  back,  and  they  looked  everywhere  for  him, 
except  in  his  room.  They  knew  he  could  not  have 
gone  in  there  if  he  had  been  so  disposed,  for  the  door 
was  locked. 

Night  came  at  last,  and  so  did  all  the  negroes 
employed  on  the  plantation,  who  asked  for  their 
money.  The  general,  knowing  that  it  would  be  of 
no  use  to  argue  with  them,  declined  to  pay  them  off 
until  the  year  for  which  they  were  hired  was  ended ; 
but  he  promised  that,  if  they  saw  the  apparition  again 
and  would  show  it  to  him,  he  would  settle  with  them 
at  once  and  let  them  all  go.  Don  breathed  easier 
after  that.  He  was  afraid  that  his^  propensity  for 
mischief  was  about  to  occasion  his  father  great  incon- 
venience, and  he  was  glad  that  the  trouble  could  be 
averted  without  a  confession  on  his  part.  He  told 
himself  that  his  father  would  never  see  the  apparition. 
He  would  take  precious  good  care  to  avoid  that. 

Don  did  not  put  on  old  Jordan's  clothes  that  night, 
because  Godfrey  did  not  come  to  the  potato-patch  as 


254  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

he  had  agreed.  Clarence  waited  and  watched  for 
him  until  nine  o'clock,  and  as  soon  as  he  could  slip 
away  from  his  relatives  the  next  morning,  he  went 
down  to  Godfrey's  cabin  to  see  what  had  kept  him  at 
home.  Don  followed  him  at  a  distance,  and  saw  that 
his  cousin  held  a  long  and  earnest  conversation  with 
Godfrey,  and  that  he  seemed  to  be  very  much  elated 
about  something  when  he  came  back.  By  putting 
these  two  things  together,  Don  arrived  at  the  con- 
clusion that  Godfrey  would  be  on  hand  that  night, 
and  so  he  was.  Don  happened  to  be  on  the  watch 
when  he  went  into  the  summer-house  ;  and  knowing 
that  Godfrey  would  not  come  so  far  unless  he  intended 
to  go  the  rest  of  the  way,  he  ran  back  to  the  house 
to  get  ready  for  him.  It  was  certainly  provoking, 
when  he  was  in  so  great  a  hurry,  to  find  the  kitchen 
occupied  by  two  servants,  who  would  surely  see  him 
if  he  took  the  key  to  Jordan's  room  down  from  its 
nail,  and  who,  besides,  would  be  certain  to  speak 
about  it.  They  must  be  got  out  of  the  room  somehow, 
and  there  was  no  time  to  waste. 

"Jane,"  said  Don,  suddenly,  "did  you  hear 
mother  calling  you?" 

"No,  sar,"  replied  the  girl,  jumping  up. 

"I  didn't  either,"  was  Don's  mental  comment,  as 


THE    BURIED   TREASURE.  255 

she  hurried  away.  "  Ben,"  he  added,  turning  to  the 
old  negro  who  sat  in  the  chimney-corner,  "  what  did 
old  preacher  Hudson  want  of  you  just  a  few  minutes 
ago  ?" 

"  Sar  ?"  exclaimed  Ben.  "  I  didn't  see  no  preacher 
Hudson  to-day,  sar !" 

"  Why,  wasn't  he  out  at  the  gate  just  now  calling 
for  you  ?" 

"Mebbe  so,  sar,"  replied  Ben,  rising  and  picking 
up  his  hat,  "  but  I  didn't  see  him.  Mebbe  he's  dar 
now." 

"  I  don't  think  he  is,"  said  Don,  to  himself,  "  but 
it  will  not  hurt  you  to  go  out  and  see ;  and  in  the 
meantime 

Don  put  the  key  into  his  pocket  as  soon  as  Ben 
was  out  of  sight,  and  lost  no  time  in  making  his  way 
to  the  barn.  At  the  door  he  met  the  hostler. 

"  Time  to  lock  up  now,  Mr.  Don,"  said  the  latter, 
"but  I'se  a  little  jubus  'bout  dat  barn,  sar.  Yes, 
sar,  I'se  a  little  jubus  !" 

"  Well,  then,  go  back  to  your  quarters  and  I  will 
lock  the  doors,"  replied  Don. 

The  hostler,  glad  to  be  relieved  of  so  disagreeable 
a  duty,  turned  and  went  off,  and  Don,  after  closing 
all  the  doors,  and  locking  all  except  one,  hurried 


THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

into  old  Jordan's  room.  It  was  the  work  of  but  a 
few  minutes  to  put  on  the  negro's  clothes  and  black 
his  face  and  hands ;  and  this  being  done,  he  seized  a 
shovel,  and  stealing  out  of  the  barn,  climbed  the 
fence  and  ran  across  the  potato-patch.  About  thirty 
yards  from  the  fence  he  stopped,  and  crouching  down 
close  to  the  ground,  waited  to  see  what  was  going  to 
happen.  Presently  he  heard  cautious  footsteps,  and 
a  few  seconds  later  two  heads  appeared  above  the  top 
rail  of  the  fence. 

"  There  they  are,"  thought  Don,  his  heart  beating 
rapidly  with  excitement.  "  Now  I'll  see  if  either 
of  them  has  courage  enough  to  come  over  the  fence 
after  they  find  out  I  am  here." 

As  these  thoughts  passed  through  Don's  mind  he 
arose  to  his  feet,  and  driving  his  shovel  into  the 
ground  began  throwing  out  the  dirt  so  rapidly,  that 
in  a  very  short  space  of  time  he  had  dug  a  hole  as 
large  as  a  moderate  workman  would  have  been  able 
to  dig  in  ten  minutes.  He  worked  till  the  perspira- 
tion started  out  all  over  him,  but  kept  his  eyes  fast- 
ened on  the  two  heads,  which  could  be  seen  plainly 
above  the  fence.  He  knew  that  the  owners  of  the 
heads  heard  the  sound  of  the  shovel,  and  that  they 
were  listening  to  it  and  talking  about  it.  They  stood 


THE   BURIED  TREASURE.  257 

there  at  the  fence  so  long  that  Don  began  to  think 
they  were  too  badly  frightened  to  come  any  nearer. 

"  I  am  afraid  I  haven't  managed  this  thing  quite 
right,"  thought  Don.  "  I  ought  to  have  let  them 
come  into  the  field  first,  and  then  showed  myself  to 
them  while  they  were  at  work.  Godfrey  will  never 
come  within  reach  of  me  again  while  I  have  these 
clothes  on." 

Very  likely  Godfrey  never  would,  if  he  had  been 
left  to  himself;  but  Don  had  somebody  else  to  con- 
tend with,  and  that  was  his  cousin  Clarence,  upon 
whom  he  had  thus  far  scarcely  bestowed  a  thought. 
Clarence  had  more  courage  then  Godfrey.  He  had 
almost  too  much,  Don  afterward  thought,  when  he 
found  himself  tied  up  in  the  potato-hole. 

The  two  stood  at  the  fence  and  talked  and  listened 
for  a  few  minutes,  and  then  to  Don's  great  surprise, 
and  somewhat  to  his  alarm,  they  jumped  over  into 
the  field  and  came  toward  him,  Clarence  leading  the 
way. 

Don  had  half  a  mind  to  throw  down  his  shovel 
and  take  to  his  heels ;  but  suppose  he  had  done  so, 
and  the  swift-footed  Godfrey,  emboldened  by  his 
flight,  had  followed  and  caught  him  !  What  then  ? 
It  would  have  turned  the  joke  upon  himself,  and 
17 


258  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

besides  Clarence  would  have  found  that  his  cousin 
was  acquainted  with  his  secret,  and  that  was  some- 
thing Don  did  not  want  him  to  know. 

"  I  am  between  two  fires,"  thought  Don,  almost 
ready  to  laugh  in  spite  of  his  fear  of  detection,  "  and 
for  once  in  my  life  I  have  overreached  myself.  I 
am  sure  to  be  found  out,  no  matter  whether  I  run 
away  or  stay  here,  and  then  what  will  Clarence  think 
of  himself?  Could  he  ever  face  father  again,  after 
entering  into  a  conspiracy  to  rob  him  of  eighty 
thousand  dollars  ?  I'd  like  to  spare  his  feelings  if  I 
can.  Perhaps  if  I  keep  on  digging,  and  act  as  though 
I  didn't  see  or  hear  them,  they  will  become  frightened 
and  go  away." 

This  was  Don's  only  hope  now,  but  it  did  not  last 
long,  for  it  was  hardly  formed  in  his  mind  before 
Clarence  marched  up  and  seized  him  by  the  arm. 
Don  was  highly  amused  by  the  conversation  the  two 
engaged  in  when  they  came  close  to  him  ;  and  when 
Clarence  lighted  a  match  and  surveyed  him  by  the 
light  it  threw  out,  he  would  have  spoken,  had  his 
cousin  made  the  least  sign  of  recognition.  But 
Clarence  could  see  no  resemblance  between  those 
black  features  and  Don's  handsome  face ;  and  besides 
Godfrey  was  so  positive  that  they  had  captured  old 


THE   BURIED   TREASURE.  259 

Jordan  himself,  that  he  never  had  a  suspicion  of  the 
truth. 

Don  played  the  part  of  ghost  as  long  as  he  could, 
and  spoke  only  when  he  found  that  he  must,  or  feel 
the  weight  of  Godfrey's  shovel  in  his  ribs.  As  he 
could  see  no  way  out  of  the  difficulty  in  which  he  was 
placed,  he  trusted  entirely  to  luck,  hoping  that  Clar- 
ence would  let  him  go  without  compelling  him  to  tell 
who  he  was.  He  heard  all  that  passed  between  the 
two,  and  was  not  a  little  amazed  to  learn  that  he  was 
to  be  confined  in  the  potato-hole,  and  left  without 
anything  to  eat  or  drink,  until  he  was  ready  to  tell 
where  the  barrel  was  hidden.  He  pondered  the  mat- 
ter deeply  while  he  was  being  led  across  the  field  and 
down  the  road  toward  Godfrey's  cabin,  but  did  not 
reveal  himself,  because  he  still  clung  to  the  hope 
that  something  might  turn  up  in  his  favor.  He 
uttered  a  feeble  protest  against  the  treatment  he  was 
receiving,  just  as  he  believed  old  Jordan  would  have 
done,  had  he  been  in  the  same  situation,  but  of  course 
it  did  no  good.  While  Godfrey  was  gone  for  the  rope 
and  he  was  alone  with  Clarence,  he  was  several  times 
on  the  point  of  speaking  out,  but  could  not  without 
doing  the  very  thing  he  most  wished  to  avoid. 
While  he  was  thinking  about  it,  Godfrey  came  back, 


260  THE    BURIED    TREASURE. 

and  almost  before  he  knew  it,  he  was  confined  in  the 
cellar,  and  Clarence  and  Godfrey  were  out  of  hearing. 

"  Here  I  am,"  thought  Don,  "and  if  I  don't  get 
out  and  reach  home  very  shortly  after  Clarence  does 
there  will  be  a  hubbub  indeed.  I  wish  I  hadn't  done 
it.  What  a  desperate  fellow  that  Clarence  Gordon 
is  !  If  he  doesn't  turn  over  a  new  leaf  pretty  soon, 
he  will  come  to  some  bad  end  as  sure  as  he  is  a  living 
boy.  What  will  he  have  to  say  for  himself  when  he 
finds  out  what  he  has  done?  0,  I  must  get  away!" 

But  Don's  resolutions  amounted  to  nothing,  and 
neither  did  the  efforts  he  made  to  free  himself  from 
his  bonds.  Godfrey  had  done  his  work  well,  and 
Don  could  move  neither  hand  nor  foot.  He  tried  to 
pull  the  stanchion  down,  but  it  was  as  solid  as  it  was 
the  first  day  it  was  put  up  there,  and  Don  could  not 
even  shake  it.  He  was  fast,  and  there  he  must  stay 
until  some  one  came  to  release  him.  His  feelings, 
as  he  began  to  realize  this  fact,  were  none  of  the 
pleasantest,  but  still  they  were  much  more  agreeable 
than  his  cousin's  were  the  next  morning,  when  he 
first  learned  from  Godfrey  Evans  who  it  was  that  he 
had  assisted  to  capture  and  imprison  the  night  before ; 
and  to  him  we  will  now  turn  before  we  tell  how  Don 
got  out,  and  what  happened  to  him  afterward. 


THE    BURIED    TREASURE.  261 

We  left  Clarence  leaning  against  the  corn-crib, 
almost  overwhelmed  with  the  startling  disclosures  his 
companion  in  trouble  had  just  made  to  him. 

"  I  can  see  through  some  of  it  now  jest  as  easy  as 
fallin'  off  a  log,"  moaned  Godfrey,  rocking  himself 
back  and  forth  as  he  sat  on  the  ground,  "  an'  I  blame 
myself  fur  not  seein'  through  it  sooner.  That  thar 
Don  is  a  great  feller  fur  tricks,  an'  here  he's  gone 
an'  dressed  hisself  up  like  ole  Jordan  so's  to  fool  me 
an'  the  rest." 

"  If  that  is  the  case,"  said  Clarence,  who  at  last 
succeeded  in  finding  his  tongue,  "  he  must  have 
known  about  the  barrel ;  and  how  did  he  find  that 
out  ?" 

"  I  didn't  say  I  could  see  through  it  all,  did  I  ?" 
demanded  Godfrey.  "  That's  the  part  I  can't  under- 
stand, no  more'n  I  can  understand  how  you  fust  come 
to  know  about  the  bar'l." 

"  How  do  you  know  it  was  Don  ?"  asked  Clarence, 
who  could  not  realize  the  situation  in  which  he  was 
placed.  "  You  haven't  been  near  the  cellar  this 
morning,  have  you  ?" 

"  No,  I  hain't ;  but  I  know  it's  Mr.  Don  all  the 
same,"  replied  Godfrey.  "Did  ye  never  hear  him 
whistle  ?  Wai,  I  have.  He  can  whistle  eo't  ye  can 


2C2  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

hear  him  a  mile ;  an'  the  fust  thing  I  heerd  this 
mornin',  when  I  opened  my  eyes,  was  him  a  whistlin' 
like  he  was  a  callin'  his  dogs.  I  went  to  the  door 
an'  listened,  kase  somethin'  kinder  told  me  that 
mebbe  things  wasn't  jest  right  like  they'd  oughter 
be,  an'  if  them  whistles  didn't  come  from  that  tater- 
hole,  I  ain't  a  settin'  here." 

"  Couldn't  old  Jordan  whistle  ?"  asked  Clarence, 
who  still  clung  to  the  hope  that  Godfrey  was  mis- 
taken. 

"  Not  like  that,  an'  nuther  could  anybody  else. 
I  tell  you  he's  thar,  Mr.  Clarence,  an'  now  what's 
goin'  to  become  of  me  an'  you  ?" 

"  De  pony  ready,  sar,"  said  the  hostler,  showing 
himself  at  the  end  of  the  crib  at  this  moment. 

"  Whar  ye  goin'  ?"  asked  Godfrey,  as  Clarence 
moved  away.  "  Don't  leave  me  now.  I'm  in  a 
power  of  trouble  an'  trib'lation  !" 

"  Am  I  any  better  off,  I'd  like  to  know  ?"  demanded 
the  boy  angrily.  "  You  think  of  no  one  but  your- 
self. Here  am  I,  fifteen  hundred  miles  from  home, 
and  with  scarcely  twenty  dollars  that  I  can  call  my 
own." 

"That's  more'n  I've  got,"  whined  Godfrey. 

"  I  shouldn't  care  a  snap  if  we  had  only  found  the 


THE    BURIED   TREASURE.  263 

barrel,"  continued  Clarence.  "  With  my  pockets 
full  of  money  I  could  go  anywhere ;  but  as  it  is,  how 
am  I  going  to  get  home  ?  That's  what  troubles  me. 
Of  course  I  can't  stay  here  !" 

"  No  more  can  I,"  said  Godfrey. 

"  Yes,  you  can.  No  one  will  ever  say  a  word  to 
you  about  it ;  but  I  can't  face  any  of  my  uncle's 
family  after  what  I  have  done.  Of  course  Don  will 
blow  the  whole  thing  the  minute  he  gets  out.  He 
can't  avoid  it,  unless  he  tells  a  lie,  and  that's  some- 
thing he  says  he  never  did  in  his  life.  I  wish  to 
goodness  I  could  say  as  much  !" 

Clarence  had,  beyond  a  doubt,  placed  himself  in  a 
very  unpleasant  situation,  and  the  longer  he  talked 
and  thought  about  it,  the  more  vividly  did  the  fact 
seem  to  impress  itself  upon  his  mind.  One  thing 
was  certain :  he  could  not  stay  under  his  uncle's  roof 
any  longer,  and  he  thought  it  would  be  policy  to  get 
as  far  as  possible  out  of  the  way  before  the  general 
returned.  He  ran  around  the  corner  of  the  crib  to 
the  place  where  the  pony  was  standing,  and  paying 
no  heed  to  Godfrey's  earnest  entreaties  that  he  would 
stay  just  long  enough  to  tell  him  what  he  ought  to 
do  under  the  circumstances,  Clarence  sprang  into  the 
saddle  and  galloped  out  of  the  yard.  Almost  invol- 


264  THE   BURIED    TREASURE. 

untarily  he  turned  down  the  road  toward  Godfrey's 
cabin.  He  had  a  vague  idea  that  something  might 
yet  be  done  to  avert  the  calamity  he  so  much  dreaded. 
If  Don  would  promise  to  say  nothing  about  what  had 
happened  the  night  before,  and  make  up  some  plaus- 
ible story  to  tell  his  father,  he  (Clarence)  would 
release  him,  and  read  him  a  lecture  on  the  subject 
of  practical  joking.  That  much  being  arranged,  he 
could,  perhaps,  content  himself  on  the  plantation  for 
two  weeks  longer,  during  which  time  he  could  write 
to  his  mother,  who  would  be  sure  to  send  him  money 
to  take  him  home,  if  he  asked  for  it.  As  soon  as  it 
arrived  he  would  bid  good-by  to  all  his  relatives  in 
Mississippi ;  and  when  he  was  once  safely  on  board 
a  steamer  bound  up  the  river,  he  did  not  care  how 
soon  Don  told  about  passing  the  night  in  the  potato- 
hole.  The  longer  Clarence  thought  of  this,  the  more 
feasible  did  the  plan  seem.  It  all  rested  with  Don, 
and  he  was  a  good-hearted  fellow,  who,  for  the  sake 
of  keeping  his  cousin  out  of  trouble,  ought  to  be 
willing  to  tell  a  lie.  Clarence  thought  it  would  do 
BO  harm  to  ask  him,  at  any  rate ;  and  with  this 
object  in  view  he  put  the  pony  into  a  gallop,  and 
went  down  the  lane  at  a  more  rapid  rate  than  he  had 
ever  before  travelled  on  horseback. 


THE    BURIED   TREASURE.  265 

Arriving  at  the  turn  in  the  road,  where  he  had 
remained  to  keep  guard  over  the  prisoner  while  God- 
frey was  gone  after  the  rope,  Clarence  dismounted, 
tied  the  pony  to  a  swinging  branch,  climbed  the  fence 
and  made  his  way  through  the  brier-patch  toward 
the  potato-hole.  He  listened  repeatedly,  but  could 
not  hear  Don's  whistle,  and  he  hoped  that  it  was 
because  his  cousin  was  tired  and  had  stopped  to  rest ; 
but  something  told  him  that  it  was  because  he  had 
been  liberated.  This  proved  to  be  the  truth  of  the 
matter,  as  Clarence  found  when  he  reached  the  cellar. 
The  door  stood  wide  open,  and  looking  in  he  saw  the 
plough-line  with  which  his  cousin  had  been  bound, 
lying  in  pieces  at  the  foot  of  the  stanchion. 

"  It's  all  over  with  me,"  thought  Clarence,  hurry- 
ing away  from  the  cellar  with  as  much  haste  as  he 
would  have  exhibited  had  he  seen  some  frightful 
object  there.  "  Very  likely  he  is  at  home  by  this 
time  telling  all  he  knows.  I  wish  I  was  at  home 
too.  I  don't  see  why  I  ever  consented  to  come  here." 

Clarence  suddenly  stopped  and  listened  intently. 
A  few  weeks  ago  he  would  not  have  noticed  the 
sound  that  attracted  his  attention,  but  he  noticed  it 
now,  faint  as  it  was,  and  he  was  glad  to  hear  it,  too. 
It  was  the  sound  of  a  steam  whistle,  and  it  came 
from  the  river  below  him.  He  recognised  it  at  once, 


266  THE    BURIED   TREASURE. 

for  he  had  heard  it  often  during  his  journey  down 
the  river.  "  That's  the  Emma  Deane,"  thought  he. 
"  She  has  been  to  New  Orleans,  and  is  now  on  her 
way  up  the  river.  Can  I  reach  the  landing  in  time 
to  catch  her,  I  wonder  ?  I  will,  if  Don's  pony  has 
the  wind  to  stand  the  gallop." 

Clarence  ran  through  the  brier-patch,  scratching 
his  hands  and  face  and  tearing  his  clothes  at  almost 
every  step,  but  nothing  could  stop  his  progress. 
Reaching  the  fence  where  he  had  left  the  pony,  he 
quickly  untied  him,  and  jumping  on  his  back,  went 
tearing  up  the  road  with  all  the  speed  the  spirited 
little  animal  could  be  induced  to  put  forth.  He  did 
not  look  up  when  he  passed  his  uncle's  house,  but 
kept  his  hat  down  over  his  eyes,  urged  on  the  pony, 
and  finally  disappeared  around  the  bend,  and  entered 
a  thick  piece  of  woods  that  bounded  that  side  of  Gen- 
eral Gordon's  plantation.  As  he  dashed  along  wholly 
engrossed  with  his  gloomy  thoughts,  and  intent  on 
reaching  the  landing  before  the  steamer,  there  was 
a  violent  rustling  among  the  bushes,  the  pony  jumped 
quickly  to  one  side,  and  his  rider,  being  taken  off  his 
guard,  was  thrown  flat  in  the  middle  of  the  dusty 
lane.  Clarence  scrambled  to  his  feet  and  made  a 
blind  dash  to  recover  the  bridle  which  had  been 
pulled  from  his  grasp,  but  the  pony  was  too  quick 


THE   BURIED    TREASURE.  267 

for  him.  He  wheeled  on  the  instant,  flourished  his 
heels  in  the  air  and  started  for  home. 

Clarence  was  not  injured  in  the  least  by  the  fall, 
but  he  was  pretty  well  shaken,  and  so  nearly  blinded 
by  the  dust  that  it  was  a  minute  or  two  before  he 
could  collect  his  scattered  senses,  and  clear  his  eyes 
so  that  he  could  take  note  of  what  was  going  on 
around  him.  The  first  thing  he  saw  was  the  pony's 
white  tail  disappearing  around  the  turn  in  the  road, 
and  the  next  was  Godfrey  Evans,  who  arose  from  a 
thicket  of  bushes,  and  hurrying  up  laid  hold  of  the 
boy's  collar. 

"  I'm  pretty  badly  shaken  up,  but  I  don't  need  any 
help,"  said  Clarence,  who  was  already  on  his  feet. 
"  Hallo  !  what's  the  matter  with  you?" 

Clarence  had  by  this  time  cleared  the  dust  from 
his  eyes  so  that  he  could  take  a  good  look  at  his 
companion.  There  was  an  expression  on  his  face 
that  he  had  never  seen  there  before,  arid  he  did  not 
know  what  to  make  of  it. 

"  Why  don't  you  let  go  my  collar  ?"  demanded 
Clarence. 

"  Kase  I  want  them  twenty  dollars  ye've  got  in 
yer  pocket — that's  why,"  replied  Godfrey,  savagely. 

Clarence  was  too  amazed  to  speak. 


268 


THE    BURIED    TREASURE. 


CHAPTER  XVI. 

CONCLUSION. 

TTAND  'em  out  here,  I  say,"  repeated  Godfrey, 
"  an'  don't  waste  no  time  in  thinkin'  about  it, 
nuther !" 

"You've  turned  highwayman,  have  you?"  said 
the  boy,  recovering  his  power  of  speech  by  an  effort. 
"  Well,  you  shan't  have  the  money.  I  have  use  for 
it  myself,  and  I  could  easily  use  more  if  I  had  it." 

"  So  can  I  use  it,"  said  Godfrey,  "an'  I'm  goin<* 
to  have  it,  too.  Yer  mighty  good  to  yerself,  ain't 
ye?  Yer  going  off  to  yer  home,  fifteen  hundred 
miles  away,  an'  leave  me  to  bear  the  brunt  of  this 
business  as  best  I  can.  But  I  ain't  agoin'  to  stay 
nuther.  I'm  goin'  away,  too.  Hand  'em  out  here  !" 

"And  what  shall  I  do?"  asked  Clarence,  who 
began  to  grow  alarmed  when  he  saw  how  determined 
Godfrey  was.  "  How  shall  I  get  home  without  any 
money  to  pay  my  way  ?" 

"  Hand  'em  out  here,  I  say,  an'  be  quick  about 


THE    BURIED    TREASURE. 

it,"  answered  Godfrey,  making  an  effort  to  put  his 
hand  into  the  boy's  pocket.  "  I  don't  care  how  ye 
get  hum.  Ye  got  me  into  this  scrape  an'  ye  must 
pay  my  way  outen  it;  that's  how  the  thing  stands." 

"  I'll  not  go  home  at  all,"  exclaimed  Clarence, 
doubling  himself  up  and  resisting  to  the  utmost  all 
Godfrey's  efforts  to  force  his  hand  into  his  pocket. 
"  I'll  stay  and  see  this  thing  out  on  purpose  to  have 
you  arrested." 

"  I  shall  be  miles  back  in  the  swamp  in  less'n  an 
hour,"  replied  Godfrey,  becoming  enraged  at  the 
boy's  opposition  and  throwing  him  flat  on  his  back 
in  the  road.  "  I've  got  my  rifle  with  me,  an'  the 
fust  man  that  follows  me  will  come  to  his  death  !" 

Clarence  did  not  doubt  this  in  the  least,  for  the 
expression  on  Godfrey's  face  told  him  that  he  was 
terribly  in  earnest.  He  was  like  a  child  in  the  angry 
man's  grasp,  but  knowing  how  much  depended  on 
the  small  stock  of  money  he  had  in  his  pocket  he 
fought  desperately  to  retain  possession  of  it,  but  all 
to  no  purpose.  Godfrey  rolled  him  over,  face  down- 
ward, and  holding  him  fast  with  one  hand,  quickly 
found  the  pocket-book  with  the  other  and  pulled  it 
out.  He  was  about  to  examine  it  to  make  sure  that 
the  money  was  in  it,  but  just  then  his  ear  caught  the 


270  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

clatter  of  a  horse's  hoofs  on  the  hard  road.  He  lis- 
tened to  it  a  moment,  and  then  jumped  up  and  ran 
into  the  thicket  from  which  he  had  just  emerged ; 
while  Clarence,  being  equally  anxious  to  avoid  obser- 
vation, scrambled  to  his  feet  with  all  haste  and 
plunged  into  an  opposite  thicket.  Almost  overcome 
with  the  violence  of  his  exertions  he  lay  flat  upon 
the  ground,  behind  a  convenient  log,  until  the  horse- 
man came  in  sight,  and  then  quickly  ducked  his  head 
and  held  his  breath.  It  was  his  uncle.  He  passed 
swiftly  along,  looking  neither  to  the  right  nor  left, 
and  disappeared  around  a  bend  in  the  road. 

"  Whew  !"  panted  Clarence.  "  Wasn't  that  a  nar- 
row escape  ?  What  if  I  had  waited  to  tell  him  about 
the  robbery,  as  I  at  first  meant  to  do  ?  This  is  a 
little  ahead  of  any  experience  I  have  had  yet." 

Clarence  looked  up  and  down  the  road  to  make 
sure  that  the  coast  was  clear,  and  then  came  out  and 
crossed  over  to  the  opposite  side  to  look  for  Godfrey. 
He  was  not  to  be  seen.  Clarence  listened  intently, 
but  could  hear  nothing  but  the  sighing  of  the  wind 
through  the  branches  of  the  trees.  He  called  God- 
frey's name  as  loudly  as  he  dared,  but  no  answer 
was  returned. 

"  He's  gone,"  thought  the  boy,  "  and  so  are  my 


THE    BURIED    TREASURE.  271 

twenty  dollars ;  and  here  I  am,  two  miles  from  the 
landing,  afoot  and  alone.  I  wish  I  dared  stay  and 
have  that  fellow  hunted  up  and  punished.  But  I'd 
much  rather  lose  the  money  than  face  my  uncle  after 
he  finds  out  what  I  have  done.  I  declare,  I'm  a  nice- 
looking  fellow  to  go  among  folks,"  he  added,  looking 
down  at  his  coat,  which  was  sadly  soiled  and  torn. 
"  And  the  worst  of  it  is,  I  shall  continue  to  look  this 
way  for  some  days  to  come." 

Clarence  thumped  his  clothes  energetically  to 
knock  the  dust  out  of  them,  settled  his  hat  firmly  on 
his  head  and  set  out  at  his  best  pace  in  the  direction 
of  Rochdale.  He  ran  almost  all  the  way,  and  the 
last  half  mile  he  made  in  remarkably  quick  time  con- 
sidering the  circumstances,  for  he  heard  the  Emma 
Deane  whistle  as  she  approached  the  landing.  When 
he  turned  into  the  street  on  which  the  post-office 
stood,  he  was  almost  ready  to  drop  with  fatigue,  but 
he  was  obliged  to  run  faster  than  ever,  for  he  heard 
the  bell  ring,  and  he  knew  that  that  was  a  signal  to 
the  crew  to  stand  by  the  lines.  He  hoped  there 
would  be  no  one  at  the  landing  to  see  him,  tut  he  did 
not  know  the  habits  of  the  planters  living  in  the  vicin- 
ity. They  were  out  in  full  force,  and  Clarence,  as 
he  dashed  through  them  with  his  hat  in  his  hand  and 


272  THE   BURIED  TREASURE. 

the  perspiration  streaming  from  his  face,  excited  no 
little  astonishment,  as  he  knew  by  the  remarks  he 
heard  on  every  side.  He  staggered  up  the  staging, 
and  unable  to  go  a  step  farther,  sat  down  on  the  stairs 
that  led  to  the  boiler-deck,  and  panted  loudly.  The 
mates  of  the  boat  and  the  shipping  clerk  thought  they 
recognised  him,  but  were  not  quite  sure  about  it ; 
and  that  was  not  to  be  wondered  at,  for  he  looked 
very  unlike  the  dashing,  fashionably -dressed  young 
fellow  who  had  spent  his  money  so  freely  for  ale  and 
cigars  on  the  down  trip. 

"  Is  this  you,  Gordon  ?"  exclaimed  the  clerk. 

"  It's  what  is  left  of  me,"  gasped  Clarence. 

"  Why,  how  did  you  ever  get  into  this  fix  ?  Your 
clothes  are  torn " 

"I  know,"  interrupted  Clarence.  "Wait  until  I 
recover  my  breath,  and  I'll  tell  you  all  about  it." 

Clarence  reached  the  steamer  just  in  time ;  for,  as 
he  sank  panting  and  exhausted  upon  the  stairs,  the 
lines  were  cast  off,  and  in  five  minutes  more  the 
Emma  Deane  was  on  her  way  up  the  river.  The 
clerk  superintended  the  getting  out  of  the  freight  that 
was  to  be  put  off  at  the  next  landing,  and  then  came 
and  sat  down  beside  Clarence,  who,  by  this  time, 
began  to  feel  a  little  more  like  himself. 


CLARENCE  ESCAPES  ON  THE  "EMMA  DEANE." 


THE    BURIED    TREASURE.  273 

"  Am  I  not  a  pretty  looking  object  ?"  said  the 
latter. 

"  Well,  I've  seen  you  when  I  thought  you  looked 
better,"  answered  the  clerk,  with  a  laugh.  "Been 
taking  a  rough  and  tumble  with  somebody  ashore?" 

"No,"  replied  Clarence. 

"  You  left  your  baggage,  didn't  you  ?" 

"  I  have  none.  I  am  only  going  to  Cairo  on 
business  for  my  uncle.  I  left  home  on  a  skittish 
young  horse,  that  I  was  to  leave  at  the  landing  until 
my  uncle  could  send  for  him,  but  he  did  not  bring 
me  all  the  way.  He  threw  me  up  there  in  the  woods, 
and  dragged  me  about  twenty  yards  with  my  foot  in 
the  stirrup,  before  I  could  free  myself.  But  I  had 
no  idea  I  was  so  badly  used  up,"  said  Clarence,  rising 
to  his  feet  and  pulling  off  his  coat.  "  If  I  had,  I 
should  have  gone  back  and  made  a  new  start  with 
another  suit  of  clothes.  I  say,  haven't  you  an  extra 
coat  to  sell  ?  The  rest  of  my  clothes  will  do  until  I 
reach  Cairo." 

"  Perhaps  I  can  accommodate  you,"  said  the  clerk. 
"  Come  up  to  my  room,  and  after  you  have  taken  a 
wash  and  a  brush  you'll  look  better." 

Clarence  accompanied  the  clerk  to  his  room  in 
Texas  (that  is  the  name  given  to  the  upper  cabin  in 
18 


274  THE    BURIED   TREASURE. 

river  steamers),  and  after  he  had  bathed  his  hands 
and  face,  and  given  his  clothes  a  thorough  brushing 
he  proceeded  to  make  an  estimate  of  the  damages  he 
had  received.  He  decided  that  his  trowsers,  boots 
and  vest  would  pass  muster,  and  so  would  his  shirt 
and  collar,  although  they  were  both  pretty  badly 
rumpled ;  but  the  coat  was  torn  beyond  all  repair, 
and  was  fit  only  for  somebody's  rag-bag.  The  clerk 
thought  so  too,  and  took  down  from  a  nail  in  his  room 
a  coat  which  he  said  he  didn't  need,  and  which 
Clarence  might  wear  and  welcome  if  he  were  only 
going  on  to  Cincinnati ;  but  as  he  was  to  stop  off  at 
Cairo,  perhaps  he  had  better  buy  it.  Clarence 
thought  now  that  he  would  have  played  his  game  a 
little  sharper  if  he  had  said  nothing  about  stopping 
at  Cairo  ;  but,  in  order  to  make  the  story  he  had  yet 
to  tell  appear  reasonable,  he  was  obliged  to  hold  to 
what  he  had  already  said. 

"  Unfortunately  I  am  not  going  to  Cincinnati," 
eaid  he.  "  My  business  will  take  me  no  farther  than 
Cairo.  What's  the  coat  worth  ?" 

"  Well,  I  don't  think  five  dollars  would  be  too 
much ;  do  you  ?" 

"  0,  no.     I'll  willingly  give  you  that." 

Clarence  laid  down  the  coat,  thrust  his  hand  into 


THE   BURIED   TREASURE.  275 

his  pocket,  and  then  stopped  and  looked  at  the  clerk, 
while  a  blank  look  settled  on  his  face.  After  stand- 
ing motionless  for  a  moment,  he  began  with  frantic 
haste  to  empty  all  his  pockets.  This  done  he  sank 
down  on  the  clerk's  bed,  his  hands  dropped  by  his 
side,  and  he  looked  dejected  enough. 

"Is  it  gone  ?"  asked  the  clerk,  who  readily  under- 
stood this  pantomine. 

"  Yes,  sir,  it's  gone — my  pocket-book  with  an  even 
hundred  dollars  in  it.  Now,  am  I  not  in  a  nice  fix  ? 
How  am  I  going  to  pay  my  fare  to  Cairo  and  back  ?" 

"  It  must  have  dropped  out  of  your  pocket  when 
your  horse  threw  you,"  said  the  clerk. 

"  That's  just  the  way  it  happened,  and  every  cent 
I  had  was  in  it,  too." 

Clarence  looked  up  and  saw  that  the  clerk's  gaze 
was  fastened  on  his  watch  that  lay  on  the  bed ;  and 
that  same  watch,  which  was  a  birth-day  present  from 
his  mother,  was  the  boy's  sole  dependence  now. 
When  he  was  passing  through  the  brier-patch,  on  his 
Way  to  the  cellar  where  his  cousin  was  confined,  the 
long  chain,  which  dangled  from  his  button-hole,  was 
constantly  catching  on  the  bushes,  and  Clarence  had 
unhooked  it  and  put  it  into  his  pocket  with  the  watch. 
Probably  that  was  all  that  saved  the  time-piece,  for 


276  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

had  Godfrey  Evans  seen  the  chain,  he  might  have 
taken  that  and  the  watch  as  well  as  the  money. 

"  Do  you  suppose  there  is  any  one  on  board  who 
will  advance  me  anything  on  that  ?"  asked  Clarence, 
brightening  up  as  if  the  idea  had  just  occurred  to 
him. 

"  I  was  thinking  about  it,"  replied  the  clerk. 
"  You  might  try  our  chief  engineer.  He's  always 
trading  watches  when  he  thinks  he  can  make  any 
thing  by  it." 

"I  don't  want  to  sell  the  watch,"  said  Clarence. 
"  I  only  want  to  borrow  some  money  on  it.  I  shall 
return  to  Rochdale  at  once,  and  by  the  time  you 
come  down  again,  I  shall  be  ready  to  redeem  it." 

"  I  understand,"  said  the  clerk.  "  The  engineer 
is  in  his  room  now." 

"  Then  let's  try  him  at  once.  Come  with  me,  will 
you  ?  You  know  him  better  than  I  do." 

The  clerk  showed  Clarence  the  way  into  the  engi- 
neer's room,  where  that  officer,  having  just  come  off 
watch,  was  taking  his  usual  forenoon  nap.  He 
greeted  Clarence  cordially — he  had  smoked  more 
than  one  cigar  at  the  boy's  expense  during  the  down 
trip — and  listened  patiently  to  the  story  he  had  to 
tell.  He  examined  the  watch  and  said  he  would 


THE   BURIED   TREASURE.  277 

advance  fifty  dollars  on  it,  provided  the  owner  would 
be  ready  to  redeem  it  the  next  time  the  Emma  Deane 
stopped  at  Rochdale.  This  Clarence  readily  promised 
to  do ;  so  the  money  was  paid  at  once,  the  officer  pock- 
eted the  watch,  and  the  boy  went  out  feeling  as  if  a 
mountain  had  been  removed  from  his  shoulders.  He 
gave  the  clerk  five  dollars  for  his  coat,  paid  his  fare 
to  Cairo,  and  still  had  left  a  sum  of  money  sufficiently 
large  to  take  him  home,  provided  he  did  not  spend 
too  much  for  cigars  and  ale.  Half  an  hour  later  he 
was  sitting  on  the  boiler  deck  with  his  chair  tilted 
back,  his  feet  on  the  railing,  a  cigar  between  his 
teeth,  and  looking  as  happy  and  contented  as 
though  he  had  never  known  a  moment's  trouble  in 
his  life. 

"  Things  don't  look  quite  as  dark  as  they  did," 
said  he,  throwing  back  his  head  and  watching  the 
Bmoke  as  it  ascended  from  his  cigar.  "  I  didn't  lose 
anything  by  making  friends  of  the  officers  of  this  boat 
on  the  down  trip.  Now  that  I  am  safely  out  of  the 
scrape,  I'd  give  something  to  know  what  is  going  on 
down  there  at  the  plantation.  Forty  thousand 
dollars  !  The  last  chance  I  shall  ever  have  to  make 
a  fortune  Las  slipped  through  my  fingers ;  and  all 
through  Don's  interference.  He  deserved  just  what 


278  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

he  got,  and  I  hope  it  will  teach  him  to  mind  his  own 
business." 

During  the  journey  homeward  this  was  the  burden 
of  the  boy's  reflections.  He  knew  that  by  his  conduct 
he  had  destroyed  his  chance  of  living  on  intimate  or 
even  friendly  terms  with  his  uncle's  family,  but  for 
that  he  cared  not ;  he  scarcely  even  thought  of  it. 
If  he  had  only  found  the  barrel,  and  received  his 
share  of  the  contents,  he  imagined  he  would  have 
been  supremely  happy.  He  reached  home  in  safety, 
and  of  course  his  parents  were  very  much  surprised 
to  see  him.  He  told  his  mother  the  whole  truth, 
keeping  back  nothing,  and  left  her  to  tell  his  father. 
Mr.  Gordon  did  not  have  much  to  say  until  he  had 
had  time  to  write  to  his  brother  in  Mississippi. 
What  sort  of  an  answer  he  received  to  his  letter, 
Clarence  never  knew;  but  one  bright  morning, 
shortly  after  the  letter  came,  he  was  ordered  to  be 
ready  to  start  for  New  York  at  four  o'clock  that 
afternoon.  Then  he  knew  that  his  father's  patience 
was  all  exhausted,  and  that  he  was  to  be  placed  where 
he  would  be  controlled  by  an  iron  hand.  Entreaties 
and  promises  of  better  behavior  in  future  were  alike 
unavailing.  To  New  York  he  went,  and  his  father 
accompanied  him.  Mr.  Gordon  came  back  alone, 


THE    BURIED   TREASURE.  279 

and  the  next  time  anybody  heard  from  Clarence,  he 
was  off  the  coast  of  France  in  the  school  ship.  "  The 
officers  are  awful  hard  on  us,"  wrote  Clarence,  and 
there  were  volumes  in  that  short  sentence.  If  any 
boy  desires  to  find  out  the  full  meaning  of  it  for 
himself,  a  voyage  across  the  water  and  back  will 
teach  him  more  than  he  will  care  to  know.  Clarence 
is  in  the  school  ship  now ;  and  a  letter  Mr.  Gordon 
lately  received  from  the  captain,  states  that  a  steadier, 
more  obedient  young  sailor  never  lived.  Discipline 
has  worked  a  great  change  in  him,  and  it  is  to  be 
hoped  that  he  will  profit  by  it  when  his  term  of 
service  expires. 

And  where  was  Don  all  this  time  ?  While  Clar- 
ence was  tossing  recklessly  about  on  his  bed,  alter- 
nating between  hope  and  fear — hoping  that  matters 
would  come  out  all  right  after  his  night's  exploit, 
and  fearing  that  something  might  happen  to  defeat 
his  plans — Don  was  passing  the  time  drearily  enough 
in  Godfrey  Evans's  cellar.  The  position  in  which 
he  was  confined — he  was  standing  with  his  back 
against  the  stanchion — made  it  impossible  for  him  to 
obtain  a  wink  of  sleep,  and  he  spent  the  long,  gloomy 
hours  in  useless  struggles  to  free  himself,  and  in 
thinking,  not  of  himself,  but  of  Clarence.  How 


280  THE    BURIED    TREASURE. 

could  his  cousin  escape  the  consequences  of  his  rash 
act,  unless  he  could  free  himself  from  his  bonds,  and 
reach  home  before  his  absence  was  discovered  ?  This 
was  the  question  that  troubled  Don ;  'and  whenever 
it  arose  in  his  mind,  he  would  work  desperately  to 
free  one  of  his  hands,  knowing  that  if  that  much 
could  be  accomplished,  he  could  reach  the  knife  he 
carried  in  his  pocket,  and  in  two  seconds  more  the 
rope  could  be  cut  into  inch  pieces.  But  the  knots 
held,  in  spite  of  all  his  attempts  to  loosen  them,  and 
Don  finally  gave  up  in  despair,  and  waited  as  patiently 
as  he  could  for  daylight,  telling  himself  the  while 
that  he  had  done  all  he  could  to  save  his  cousin  from 
exposure,  and  now  Clarence  must  look  out  for  himself. 
The  morning  came  at  last,  and  Don's  heart  bounded 
with  hope  when  he  saw  the  first  rays  of  the  sun  shin- 
ing through  the  cracks  in  the  door.  He  was  pretty 
well  tired  out  by  this  time,  and  the  cords  seemed  to 
have  grown  tighter  about  his  ankles.  He  began 
shouting  to  attract  attention  as  soon  as  he  thought 
there  was  any  possibility  of  making  himself  heard ; 
and  when  he  grew  tired  of  that,  he  set  up  a  shrill 
whistle.  That  startled  somebody.  It  was  Godfrey 
Evans,  who  now  for  the  first  time  became  aware  that 
there  was  some  one  besides  old  Jordan  tied  up  in  his 


THE   BURIED   TREASURE.  281 

cellar.  He  recognised  the  whistle  the  first  time  he 
heard  it,  and  almost  overwhelmed  with  amazement 
and  alarm,  started  off  to  tell  Clarence  Gordon  of  the 
astounding  discovery  he  had  made. 

Don  whistled  at  intervals  as  long  and  as  loudly 
as  his  breath  would  permit — he  had  grown  too  hoarse 
to  shout  now — and  at  last,  when  he  had  become 
almost  discouraged,  he  heard  hasty  steps  approaching 
the  cellar.  A  moment  later  something  bounded  down 
the  stairs,  and  Don  saw  the  nose  of  one  of  his  hounds 
thrust  under  the  door. 

"  Carlo  !"  he  exclaimed,  so  highly  delighted  that 
he  could  scarcely  speak  loud  enough  to  make  him- 
self heard. 

The  dog  whined  in  answer,  and  standing  on  his 
hind  legs  placed  his  fore  feet  against  the  door,  which 
gave  away  beneath  his  weight,  and  the  animal 
bounded  into  the  cellar.  Don's  gaze  happened  to  be 
directed  toward  the  head  of  the  stairs  when  this  oc- 
curred, and  there  he  saw  his  brother  Bert,  stooping 
down  and  looking  in. 

"  Anybody  there  ?"  asked  Bert,  for  it  was  so  dark 
he  could  not  see  into  the  cellar. 

"  Come  here  and  find  out,"  said  Don. 

Bert  uttered  an  ejaculation  of  astonishment,  and 


282  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

came  down  the  steps  in  two  jumps.  All  he  could  see 
when  he  entered  was  the  white  coat  Don  wore,  but 
he  recognised  the  voice  as  he  had  recognised  the 
whistle. 

"  Cut  the  rope  first,"  exclaimed  Don,  "  and  after- 
ward ask  as  many  questions  as  you  please." 

"The  rope?"  repeated  Bert. 

"  Yes.  Come  nearer  and  you  will  see  that  I  am 
wrapped  up  in  a  plough-line." 

Bert  was  profoundly  astonished,  but  he  wisely  re- 
frained from  making  any  inquiries.  His  knife  was 
out  in  an  instant,  and  a  few  passes  with  the  blade 
liberated  Don,  who  made  a  feeble  attempt  to  walk 
and  fell  forward  into  his  brother's  arms. 

"Don't  be  uneasy,"  said  Don,  who  knew  by  the 
exclamation  his  brother  uttered  that  he  was  greatly 
alarmed.  "I'm  all  right,  only  I  feel  as  if  I  had  the 
rheumatism.  I've  been  tied  up  there  ever  since  nine 
o'clock  last  night." 

"  Why,  Don  !"  cried  Bert.   "  Who  put  you  there  ?" 

"  If  I  tell  you,  will  you  promise  not  to  say  a  word 
about  it  ?" 

"No,  I  won't,"  replied  Bert,  quickly.  "No  one 
shall  treat  you  so  and  then  go  off  scot-free  if  I  can — 
Why,  Don,  what  in  the  world — I  mean  how " 


THE   BUKIED   TREASURE.  283 

Bert  had  by  this  time  assisted  his  brother  to  the 
door  where  he  had  a  fair  view  of  him. 

"  You  mean  that  if  I  am  your  brother,  I  have 
changed  into  a  black  man  during  the  last  few  hours, 
don't  you?"  said  Don,  laughing  heartily  at  the  ex- 
pression of  astonishment  on  Bert's  face.  "  In  me 
you  behold — by  the  way,  you  don't  remember  old 
Jordan,  do  you?" 

"No,  I  do  not." 

"  Well,  I  am  he  ;  the  identical  old  nigger  !" 

"Don,"  said  Bert,  reproachfully,  "you  didn't " 

"  Yes,  I  did,"  replied  Don,  as  he  sat  down  on  the 
lowest  step  and  stretched  his  arms  and  legs.  "  I  am 
the  one  who  cut  up  all  those  shines  at  the  barn,  and 
made  the  hands  think  old  Jordan  had  risen  from  the 
dead.  I  am  sorry  now,  but  the  temptation  was  so 
strong  I  couldn't  resist  it.  But  didn't  I  scare  every- 
body, though?" 

"  But,  Don,"  said  Bert,  who  could  not  understand 
the  matter  at  all,  "  how  came " 

"  I  know  what  you  want  to  find  out,"  said  his 
brother,  "  and  '  thereby  hangs  a  tale' — a  long  one, 
too.  I'll  tell  it  while  I  am  resting." 

With  this  introduction  Don  began  and  told  a  story 
that  made  Bert  open  his  eyes  wider  than  ever.  He 


284  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

related  as  much  of  the  history  of  the  buried  treasure 
as  he  had  been  able  to  learn,  told  how  he  had  first 
found  out  about  it,  and  gave  a  glowing  description 
of  the  plans  he  had  formed  to  frighten  the  two  con- 
spirators, as  he  called  them.  He  described  minutely 
all  the  incidents  connected  with  his  capture  and  con- 
finement in  the  cellar,  and  when  he  told  of  the 
coolness  and  determination  with  which  Clarence  had 
conducted  the  whole  proceeding,  Bert's  astonishment 
was  almost  unbounded. 

"  That  was  a  joke  that  was  no  joke,"  said  Don, 
in  conclusion.  "  The  tables  were  turned  on  me  in  a 
way  that  would  have  amused  me  greatly,  had  it  not 
been  for  the  fact  that  I  knew  Clarence  was  likely  to 
suffer  for  what  he  had  done.  I  didn't  care  for  my- 
self, although  I  assure  you  there  was  no  fun  in  being 
tied  up  for  almost  twelve  hours.  Where  is  Clarence 
now  ?" 

"  I  left  him  at  the  barn,  waiting  for  your  horse  to 
be  saddled,  so  that  he  could  start  out  in  search  of 
you.  Godfrey  was  there  too,  and  I  heard  him 
promise  father  that  he  would  look  through  the  woods 
and  see  if  he  could  discover  any  signs  of  you." 

'  Did  either  of  them  know  that  they  had  captured 
me  instead  of  old  Jordan  V" 


THE    BURIED   TREASURE.  285 

"  I  heard  nothing  to  indicate  the  fact." 
"  What  did  the  folks  have  to  say  about  it  ?" 
Bert  replied  that  the  folks  had  had  a  good  deal  to 
say  about  it,  and  suggested  that  if  his  brother  was 
able  to  walk  to  the  fence  where  the  pony  was  hitched 
they  had  better  start  for  home  at  once.     The  sooner 
Don  got  there,  the  sooner  would  the  anxiety  of  his 
mother  and  sisters  be  relieved. 

"Well,  I  must  face  the  music  some  time,"  said 
Don,  resignedly,  "  and  I  suppose  I  might  as  well  do 
it  now  as  an  hour  later.  But  I  can't  go  home  in 
this  shape.  Help  me  down  to  the  lake  so  that  I  can 
wash  the  black  off  my  hands  and  face." 

It  was  a  matter  of  no  little  difficulty  for  Don  to 
walk  so  far ;  but,  by  Bert's  assistance,  he  reached 
the  shore  of  the  lake  at  last,  and  having  taken  a 
long  and  hearty  drink  of  the  water,  and  washed  off 
the  blacking,  he  felt  better.  It  was  while  he  was 
thus  engaged  that  Clarence  visited  the  cellar. 

After  Don  had  rested  a  few  minutes  and  refreshed 
himself  with  another  drink  of  water,  Bert'  brought 
up  his  pony,  and  his  brother  managed  to  climb  into 
the  saddle.  Bert  walked  by  the  pony's  side,  and  of 
course  had  a  multitude  of  questions  to  ask  about  things 
which  Don  had  not  thought  to  mention  in  his  story. 


286  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

Now,  that  his  surprise  and  indignation  had  somewhat 
abated,  he  could  laugh  heartily  at  his  brother's 
description  of  his  adventures.  They  met  no  one 
while  they  were  on  the  way  home,  and  Don  was  glad 
to  find  that  there  was  nobody  about  the  barn.  He 
hurried  into  old  Jordan's  room,  and  when  he  had  put 
on  his  own  clothes,  Bert  helped  him  into  the  house. 
His  mother  and  sisters  met  him  at  the  door,  and 
greeted  him  as  though  they  had  not  seen  him  for  a 
year  or  more.  An  explanation  was  at  once  demanded, 
but  as  Marshall  was  present,  Don  gave  it  to  his 
mother  in  her  own  room.  About  the  time  he  finished 
his  father  came  in,  and  then  the  story  had  to  be  told 
over  again.  Of  course  the  general  and  his  wife  were 
greatly  amazed,  and  they  were  troubled  and  perplexed, 
too.  They  were  troubled  because  they  had  expected 
better  things  than  this  of  Clarence,  and  perplexed 
because  they  did  not  know  just  what  ought  to  be  done 
now.  It  was  plain  that  Clarence  was  not  a  fit  asso- 
ciate for  any  decent  boy,  and  the  sooner  he  was  at 
home,  where  he  belonged,  the  better  it  would  be  for 
him  and  Don,  too. 

"  What  did  they  say  about  it  ?"  asked  Bert,  as 
soon  as  he  had  a  chance  to  speak  to  his  brother  pri- 
vately. 


THE   BURIED   TREASURE.  287 

"  They  didn't  say  much,"  was  the  reply.  "  Clar- 
ence must  go  home,  and  that  I  think  will  end  the 
matter." 

"  Perhaps  he  is  on  his  way  home  already,"  said 
Bert.  "  I  know  I  should  start  at  once  if  I  were  in 
his  place.  I  couldn't  face  anybody  after  an  act  like 
that." 

"  That  is  because  you  have  never  been  guilty  of 
a  mean  act  in  your  life,"  said  Don.  "One  gets 
hardened  to  such  things  after  a  while.  I  know  it  by 
my  experience  at  school.  Probably  Clarence  has 
been  in  more  scrapes  than  you  and  I  ever  dreamed 
of." 

That  was  not  only  very  probable,  but  very  true ; 
but  still  he  was  not  sufficiently  hardened  to  face  the 
consequences  of  this,  which  was  one  of  the  worst 
scrapes  he  had  ever  been  in. 

Half  an  hour  later,  Don's  pony  came  home  rider- 
less. The  hostler  told  the  general  that  he  came 
from  toward  the  landing,  and  that  he  had  seen  Clar- 
ence going  that  way  a  short  time  before.  Upon 
hearing  this,  the  general  set  out  at  once  for  Roch- 
dale, where  he  learned  from  some  of  the  hangers-on 
that  his  nephew  had  been  seen  to  board  the  Emma 


288  THE   BURIED   TREASURE. 

Deane,  and  as  he  had  not  come  off  again  he  must 
have  gone  up  the  river  on  her.  This  being  the  case, 
there  was  nothing  to  be  done  now  but  to  communi- 
cate with  his  father  and  await  developments. 

A  few  weeks  cleared  up  everything.  Clarence 
had  reached  his  father's  house  in  safety,  and  the 
same  letter  that  brought  the  information,  contained 
also  a  sum  of  money  sufficient  to  defray  Marshall's 
expenses  to  his  home.  The  boy  seemed  glad  to  go, 
and  his  cousins  rarely  heard  from  him  afterward. 

And  what  did  the  general  say  to  Don  ?  Not  a 
word.  The  latter  limped  about  the  house  for  nearly 
a  week  before  he  was  able  to  sit  in  the  saddle  again, 
and  his  father  wisely  concluded  that  if  his  night's 
experience  in  the  cellar  had  not  cured  him  of  his 
love  of  practical  joking,  nothing  that  he  could  say 
would  help  the  matter  any.  Of  course,  both  the 
boys  were  eager  to  learn  the  truth  concerning  the 
buried  treasure,  and  as  soon  as  Marshall  went  away, 
they  spoke  to  their  parents  about  it.  Then  it  came 
out  that  either  old  Jordan  had  wilfully  misrepre- 
sented things,  which  was  probable,  or  else  that  God- 
frey's lively  imagination  and  his  great  desire  to  be 
rich  without  labor,  had  led  him  to  magnify  the  con- 


THE    BURIED    TREASURE.  289 

tents  of  the  barrel,  which  was  still  more  probable. 
The  old  negro  had  certainly  buried  a  barrel  on  the 
morning  the  levee  was  cut,  and  it  contained  silver- 
ware that,  in  good  times,  could  have  been  bought  for 
a  thousand  or  fifteen  hundred  dollars.  The  barrel 
was  dug  up  by  another  negro  as  soon  as  the  soldiers 
were  gone,  and  the  most  of  the  silver-ware  was  in 
use  now,  and  had  been  ever  since  the  war.  The 
general  thought  this  a  good  place  to  say  something 
the  boys  would  remember.  People  do  sometimes 
get  rich  without  labor,  he  said,  but  their  wealth  does 
not,  as  a  rule,  last  long.  To  learn  the  value  of 
money,  one  must  work  for  it.  There  is  but  one  sure 
way  to  become  prosperous,, and  that  is  to  be  indus- 
trious, saving  and  honest.  Had  Godfrey  remem- 
bered this,  he  might  have  been  living  at  home,  a 
happy  and  contented  man,  instead  of  hiding  in  the 
swamp  for  fear  of  arrest.  The  general  never  thought 
of  having  him  arrested,  and  would  not  have  said  a 
word  to  him  if  he  had  met  him  in  the  road ;  but 
Godfrey  knew  something  that  the  general  didn't 
know  :  he  had  been  guilty  of  highway  robbery,  and 
he  thought  it  best  to  keep  out  of  sight.  Of  course, 
he  went  on  from  bad  to  worse — one  always  does, 
19 


290  THE    BURIED   TREASURE. 

unless  he  grows  better  every  day — and  the  people  in 
the  neighborhood  often  heard  of  him  after  that. 
Perhaps  we  also  shall  hear  of  him,  and  of  some  of  our 
other  characters,  in  the  second  volume  of  this  series, 
which  will  be  entitled,  THE  BOY  TRAPPER. 


THE    END. 


FAMOUS  STANDARD 
JUVENILE  LIBRARIES. 

ANY   VOLUME  SOLD  SEPARATELY  AT  $1.00  PER  VOLUMB 

(Kxcept  the  Sportsman's  Club  Series,  Frank  Nelson  Series  and 

Jack  Hazard  Series.). 

Each  Volume  Illustrated.     12mo.    Cloth, 


HORATIO  ALGER,  JR. 

THE  enormous  sales  of  the  books  of  Horatio  Alger,  Jr., 
show  the  greatness  of  his  popularity  among  the  boys,  and 
prove  that  he  is  one  of  their  most  favored  writers.  I  am  told 
that  more  than  half  a  million  copies  altogether  have  been 
sold,  and  that  all  the  large  circulating  libraries  in  the  country 
have  several  complete  sets,  of  which  only  two  or  three  vol- 
umes are  ever  on  the  shelves  at  one  time.  If  this  is  true, 
what  thousands  and  thousands  of  boys  have  read  and  are 
reading  Mr.  Alger's  books  !  His  peculiar  style  of  stories, 
often  imitated  but  never  equaled,  have  taken  a  hold  upon  the 
young  people,  and,  despite  their  similarity,  are  eagerly  read 
as  soon  as  they  appear. 

Mr.  Alger  became  famous  with  the  publication  of  that 
undying  book,  "Ragged  Dick,  or  Street  Life  in  New  York." 
It  was  his  first  book  for  young  people,  and  its  success  was  so 
great  that  he  immediately  devoted  himself  to  that  kind  of 
writing.  It  was  a  new  and  fertile  field  for  a  writer  then,  and 
Mr.  Alger's  treatment  of  it  at  once  caught  the  fancy  of  the 
boys.  "Ragged  Dick"  first  appeared  in  1868,  and  ever  since 
then  it  has  been  selling  steadily,  until  now  it  is  estimated 
that  about  200,000  copies  of  the  series  have  been  sold. 

— Pleasant  Hours  for  Boys  and  Girls. 


2          HENRY  T.   COATES  &  CO.'S  POPULAR  JUVENILES. 

A  writer  for  boys  should  have  an  abundant  sympathy 
with  them.  He  should  be  able  to  enter  into  their  plans, 
hopes,  and  aspirations.  He  should  learn  to  look  upon  life 
as  they  do.  Boys  object  to  be  written  down  to.  A  boy's 
heart  opens  to  the  man  or  writer  who  understands  him. 

— From  Writing  Stories  for  £oys,  by  Horatio  Alger,  Jr, 


RAGGED  DICK  SERIES. 

6  vols.  BY  HORATIO  AI.GER,  JR.  |6.oo 

Ragged  Dick.  Rough  and  Ready. 

Fame  and  Fortune.  Ben  the  Luggage  Boy. 

Mark  the  Match  Boy.  Ruf us  and  Rose. 

TATTERED  TOM  SERIES— First  Series. 

4  vols.  BY  HORATIO  AI«GER,  JR.  $4.00 

Tattered  Tom.  Phil  the  Fiddler. 

Paul  the  Peddler.  Slow  and  Sure. 

TATTERED  TOM  SERIES— Second  Series. 

4  vols.  $4-°o 

Julius.  Sam's  Chance. 

The  Young  Outlaw.  The  Telegraph  Boy. 

CAMPAIGN  SERIES. 

3  vols.  BY  HORATIO  AI.GER,  JR.  $3.00 

Frank's  Campaign.  Charlie  Codman's  Cruise. 

Paul  Prescott's  Charge. 

LUCK  AND  PLUCK  SERIES— First  Series. 

4  vols.  BY  HORATIO  AWJER,  JR.  $4.00 

Luck  and  Pluck.  Strong  and  Steady. 

Sink  or  Swim.  Strive  and  Succeed. 


HENRY  T.   COATES  &  CO.'S  POPULAR  JUVENILES.          3 

LUCK  AND  PLUCK  SERIES— Second  Series. 

4  vols.  $4.00 

Try  and  Trust.  Risen  from  the  Ranks. 

Bound  to  Rise.  Herbert  Carter's,  Legacy. 

BRAVE  AND  BOLD  SERIES. 

4  vols.  BY  HORATIO  AI,GER,  JR.  $4.00 

Brave  and  Bold.  Shifting  for  Himself. 

Jack's  Ward.  Wait  and  Hope. 

NEW  WORLD  SERIES. 

3  vols.  BY  HORATIO  AI,GER,  JR.  $3.00 

Digging  for  Gold.     Facing  the  World.         In  a  New  World. 

VICTORY  SERIES. 

3  vols.  BY  HORATIO  ALGER,  JR.  $3-00 

Only  an  Irish  Boy.  Adrift  in  the  City. 

Victor  Vane,  o£  the  Young  Secretary. 

FRANK  AND  FEARLESS  SERIES. 

3  vols.  BY  HORATIO  AI,GER,  JR.  $3.00 

Frank  Hunter's  Peril.  Frank  and  Fearless. 

The  Young  Salesman. 

GOOD  FORTUNE  LIBRARY. 

3  vols.  BY  HORATIO  ALGER,  JR.  $3.00 

Walter  Sherwood's  Probation.     A  Boy's  Fortune. 
The  Young  Bank  Messenger. 

RUPERT'S  AMBITION. 

i  vol.  BY  HORATIO  AI.GER,  JR.  f  i.oo 

JED,  THE  POOR-HOUSE  BOY. 

i  vol.  BY  HORATIO  AI.GSR,  JR.  $1.00 


4    HENRY  T.  COATES  4  CO.'S  POPULAR  JUVENILES. 

HARRY  CASTLEMON. 


HOW  I  CAME  TO  TJPRITE  MY  FIRST  BOOK. 

WHEN  I  was  sixteen  years  old  I  belonged  to  a  composi- 
tion class.  It  was  our  custom  to  go  on  the  recitation  seat 
every  day  with  clean  slates,  and  we  were  allowed  ten  min- 
utes to  write  seventy  words  on  any  subject  the  teacher 
thought  suited  to  our  capacity.  One  day  he  gave  out  "What 
a  Man  Would  See  if  He  Went  to  Greenland."  My  heart  was 
in  the  matter,  and  before  the  ten  minutes  were  up  I  had  one 
side  of  my  slate  filled.  The  teacher  listened  to  the  reading 
of  our  compositions,  and  when  they  were  all  over  he  simply 
said  :  "Some  of  you  will  make  your  living  by  writing  one 
of  these  days."  That  gave  me  something  to  ponder  upon 
I  did  not  say  so  out  loud,  but  I  knew  that  my  composition 
was  as  good  as  the  best  of  them.  By  the  way,  there  was 
another  thing  that  came  in  my  way  just  then.  I  was  read- 
ing at  that  time  one  of  Mayne  Reid's  works  which  I  had 
drawn  from  the  library,  and  I  pondered  upon  it  as  much  as 
I  did  upon  what  the  teacher  said  to  me.  In  introducing 
Swartboy  to  his  readers  he  made  use  of  this  expression  : 
"No  visible  change  was  observable  in  Swartboy's  counte- 
nance." Now,  it  occurred  to  me  that  if  a  man  of  his  educa- 
tion could  make  such  a  blunder  as  that  and  still  write  a 
book,  I  ought  to  be  able  to  do  it,  too.  I  went  home  that  very 
day  and  began  a  story,  "The  Old  Guide's  Narrative,"  which 
was  sent  to  the  New  York  Weekly ',  and  came  back,  respect- 
fully declined.  It  was  written  on  both  sides  of  the  sheets 
but  I  didn't  know  that  this  was  against  the  rules.  Nothing 
abashed,  I  began  another,  and  receiving  some  instruction, 
from  a  friend  of  mine  who  was  a  clerk  in  a  book  store,  I 
wrote  it  on  only  one  side  of  the  paper.  But  mind  you,  he 
didn't  know  what  I  was  doing.  Nobody  knew  it ;  but  one 


HENRY  T.   COATES  &  CO.'S  POPULAR  JUVENILES.          $ 

day,  after  a  hard  Saturday's  work — the  other  boys  had  been 
out  skating  on  the  brick-pond — I  shyly  broached  the  subject 
to  my  mother.  I  felt  the  need  of  some  sympathy.  She 
listened  in  amazement,  and  then  said  :  "Why,  do  you  think 
you  could  write  a  book  like  that  ?"  That  settled  the  matter, 
and  from  that  day  no  one  knew  what  I  was  up  to  until  I  sent 
the  first  four  volumes  of  Gunboat  Series  to  my  father.  Was 
it  work  ?  Well,  yes  ;  it  was  hard  work,  but  each  week  I  had 
the  satisfaction  of  seeing  the  manuscript  grow  until  the 
"Young  Naturalist"  was  all  complete. 

— Harry  Castlemon  in  the  Writer. 


GUNBOAT  SERIES. 

6  vols.  BY  HARRY  CASTLEMON.  $6.00 

Frank  the  Young  Naturalist.       Frank  before  Vicksburg. 
Frank  on  a  Gunboat.  Frank  on  the  Lower  Mississippi. 

Frank  in  the  Woods.  Frank  on  the  Prairie. 

ROCKY  MOUNTAIN  SERIES. 

3  vols.  BY  HARRY  CASTLEMON.  $3-oo 

Frank  Among  the  Rancheros.     Frank  in  the  Mountains. 
Frank  at  Don  Carlos'  Rancho. 

SPORTSMAN'S  CLUB  SERIES. 

3  vols.  BY  HARRY  CASTLEMON.  $3-75 

The  Sportsman's  Club  in  the  Saddle.    The  Sportsman's  Club 
The  Sportsman's  Club  Afloat.  Among  the  Trappers. 

FRANK  NELSON  SERIES. 

3  vols.  BY  HARRY  CASTLEMON.  13-75 

Snowed  up.         Frank  in  the  Forecastle.     The  Boy  Traders. 

BOY  TRAPPER    SERIES. 

3  vols.  BY  HARRY  CASTLEMON.  $3-°o 

The  Buried  Treasure.     The  Boy  Trapper.     The  Mail  Carrier. 


6    HENRY  T.  COATES  i  CO.  'S  POPULAR  JUVENILES. 

ROUGHING  IT  SERIES. 

3  vols.  BY  HARRY  CASTLEMON.  $3  oo 

George  in  Camp.  George  at  the  Fort. 

George  at  the  Wheel. 

ROD  AND  GUN  SERIES. 

3  vols.  BY  HARRY  CASTLEMON.  $3.00 

Don  Gordon's  Shooting  Box.      The  Young  Wild  Fowlers. 
Rod  and  Gun  Club. 

GO-AHEAD  SERIES. 

3  vols.  BY  HARRY  CASTLEMON.  $3.00 

Tom  Newcombe.  Go-Ahead.  No  Moss. 

WAR  SERIES. 

6  vols.  BY  HARRY  CASTLEMON.  $6.00 

True  to  His  Colors.  Marcy  the  Blockade-Runner. 

Rodney  the  Partisan.  Marcy  the  Refugee. 

Rodney  the  Overseer.  Sailor  Jack  the  Trader. 

HOUSEBOAT  SERIES. 

3  vols.  BY  HARRY  CASTLEMON.  $3.00 

The  Houseboat  Boys.        The  Mystery  of  Lost  River  Canon. 
The  Young  Game  Warden. 

AFLOAT  AND  ASHORE  SERIES. 

3  vols.  BY  HARRY  CASTLEMON.  $3-oo 

Rebellion  in  Dixie.  A  Sailor  in  Spite  of  Himself. 

The  Ten-Ton  Cutter. 

THE  PONY  EXPRESS  SERIES. 

3  vol.  BY  HARRY  CASTLEMON.  $3.00 

The  Pony  Express  Rider.  The  White  Beaver. 

Carl,  The  Trailer. 


HENRY  T.   COATES  &  CO.'S  POPULAR  JUVENILES.          J 

EDWARD  S.  ELLIS. 

EDWARD  S.  EUJS,  the  popular  writer  of  boys'  books,  is 
a  native  of  Ohio,  where  he  was  born  somewhat  more  than  a 
half -century  ago.  His  father  was  a  famous  hunter  and  rifle 
shot,  and  it  was  doubtless  his  exploits  and  those  of  his  asso- 
ciates, with  their  tales  of  adventure  which  gave  the  son  his 
taste  for  the  breezy  backwoods  and  for  depicting  the  stirring 
life  of  the  early  settlers  on  the  frontier. 

Mr.  Ellis  began  writing  at  an  early  age  and  his  work  was 
acceptable  from  the  first.  His  parents  removed  to  New 
Jersey  while  he  was  a  boy  and  he  was  graduated  from  the 
State  Normal  School  and  became  a  member  of  the  faculty 
while  still  in  his  teens.  He  was  afterward  principal  of  the 
Trenton  High  School,  a  trustee  and  then  superintendent  of 
schools.  By  that  time  his  services  as  a  writer  had  become 
so  pronounced  that  he  gave  his  entire  attention  to  literature. 
He  was  an  exceptionally  successful  teacher  and  wrote  a  num- 
ber of  text-books  for  schools,  all  of  which  met  with  high 
favor.  For  these  and  his  historical  productions,  Princeton 
College  conferred  upon  him  the  degree  of  Master  of  Arts. 

The  high  moral  character,  the  clean,  manly  tendencies 
and  the  admirable  literary  style  of  Mr.  Ellis'  stories  have 
made  him  as  popular  on  the  other  side  of  the  Atlantic  as  in 
this  country.  A  leading  paper  remarked  some  time  since, 
that  no  mother  need  hesitate  to  place  in  the  hands  of  her  boy 
any  book  written  by  Mr.  Ellis.  They  are  found  in  the  lead- 
ing Sunday-school  libraries,  where,  as  may  well  be  believed, 
they  are  in  wide  demand  and  do  much  good  by  their  sound, 
wholesome  lessons  which  render  them  as  acceptable  to  parents 
as  to  their  children.  All  of  his  books  published  by  Henry 
T.  Coates  &  Co.  are  re-issued  in  London,  and  many  have 
been  translated  into  other  languages.  Mr.  Ellis  is  a  writer 
of  varied  accomplishments,  and,  in  addition  to  his  stones,  is 
the  author  of  historical  works,  of  a  number  of  pieces  of  pop- 


8          HENRY  T.   COATES  &  CO.'S  POPULAR  JUVENILES. 

ular  music  and  has  made  several  valuable  inventions.  Mi. 
Ellis  is  in  the  prime  of  his  mental  and  physical  powers,  and 
great  as  have  been  the  merits  of  his  past  achievements,  there 
is  reason  to  look  for  more  brilliant  productions  from  his  pen 
in  the  near  future. 


DEERFOOT  SERIES. 

3  vols.  BY  EDWARD  S.  ELLIS.  $3.00 

Hunters  of  the  Ozark.  The  Last  War  Trail. 

Camp  in  the  Mountains. 

LOG  CABIN  SERIES. 

3  vols.  BY  EDWARD  S.  ELLIS.  $3.00 

Lost  Trail.  Footprints  in  the  Forest. 

Camp-Fire  and  Wigwam. 

BOY  PIONEER  SERIES. 

3  vols.  BY  EDWARD  S.  ELLIS.  $3.00 

Ned  in  the  Block-House.  Ned  on  the  River. 

Ned  in  the  Woods. 

THE  NORTHWEST  SERIES. 

3  vols.  BY  EDWARD  S.  ELLIS.  $3.00 

Two  Boys  in  Wyoming.  Cowmen  and  Rustlers. 

A  Strange  Craft  and  its  Wonderful  Voyage. 

BOONE  AND  KENTON  SERIES. 

3  vols.  BY  EDWARD  S.  ELLIS.  $3.00 

Shod  with  Silence.  In  the  Days  of  the  Pioneers. 

Phantom  of  the  River. 

IRON  HEART,  WAR  CHIEF  OF  THE  IROQUOIS. 

i  vol.  BY  EDWARD  S.  ELLIS.  |i.oo 

THE  SECRET  OF  COFFIN  ISLAND. 

i  vol.  BY  EDWARD  S.  ELLIS.  $ i.oo 

THE  BLAZING   ARROW. 

i  voL  BY  EDWARD  S.  ELLIS.  Ji.oo 


HENRY  T.   COATES  &  CO.'S  POPUI.AR  JUVENILES 


J.  T.  TROWBRIDGE. 

NEITHER  as  a  writer  does  he  stand  apart  from  the  great 
currents  of  life  and  select  some  exceptional  phase  or  odd 
combination  of  circumstances.  He  stands  on  the  common 
level  and  appeals  to  the  universal  heart,  and  all  that  he  sug- 
gests or  achieves  is  on  the  plane  and  in  the  line  of  march  of 
the  great  body  of  humanity. 

The  Jack  Hazard  series  of  stories,  published  in  the  late 
Our  Young  Folks,  and  continued  in  the  first  volume  of  St. 
Nicholas,  under  the  title  of  "Fast  Friends,"  is  no  doubt 
destined  to  hold  a  high  place  in  this  class  of  literature.  The 
delight  of  the  boys  in  them  (and  of  their  seniors,  too)  is 
well  founded.  They  go  to  the  right  spot  every  time.  Trow- 
bridge  knows  the  heart  of  a  boy  like  a  book,  and  the  heart 
of  a  man,  too,  and  he  has  laid  them  both  open  in  these  books 
in  a  most  successful  manner.  Apart  from  the  qualities  that 
render  the  series  so  attractive  to  all  young  readers,  they 
have  great  value  on  account  of  their  portraitures  of  American 
country  life  and  character.  The  drawing  is  wonderfully 
accurate,  and  as  spirited  as  it  is  true.  The  constable,  Sel- 
lick,  is  an  original  character,  and  as  minor  figures  where  will 
we  find  anything  better  than  Miss  Wansey,  and  Mr.  P.  Pip- 
kin, Esq.  The  picture  of  Mr.  Dink's  school,  too,  is  capital, 
and  where  else  in  fiction  is  there  a  better  nick-name  than 
that  the  boys  gave  to  poor  little  Stephen  Treadwell,  "Step 
Hen,"  as  he  himself  pronounced  his  name  in  an  unfortunate 
moment  when  he  saw  it  in  print  for  the  first  time  in  his  les- 
son in  school. 

On  the  whole,  these  books  are  very  satisfactory,  and 
afford  the  critical  reader  the  rare  pleasure  of  the  works  that 
are  just  adequate,  that  easily  fulfill  themselves  and  accom- 
plish all  they  set  out  to  do. — Scridner's  Monthly. 


10       HENRY  T.  COATES  &  CO.'S  POPULAR  JUVENILES. 

JACK  HAZARD  SERIES. 

6  vols.  BY  J.  T.  TROWBRI  GE.  17-25 

Jack  Hazard  and  His  Fortunes.   Doing  His  Best. 

The  Young  Surveyor.  A  Chance  for  Himself. 

Fast  Friends.  Lawrence's  Adventures. 


ROUNDABOUT  LIBRARY. 

For  Boys  and  Girls. 
(97  Volumes.)  75c.  per  Volume. 

The  attention  of  Librarians  and  Bookbuyers  generally 
Is  called  to  HENRY  T.  COATES  &  Co.'s  ROUNDABOUT 
LIBRARY,  by  the  popular  authors. 

EDWARD  S.  ELLIS,  MARGARET  VANDEGRIFT, 

HORATIO  ALGER,  JR.,  HARRY  CASTLEMON, 

C.  A.  STEPHENS,  G.  A.  HENTY, 

LUCY  C.  LILLIE  and  others. 

No  authors  of  the  present  day  are  greater  favorites  with 
boys  and  girls. 

Every  book  is  sure  to  meet  with  a  hearty  reception  by 
young  readers. 

Librarians  will  find  them  to  be  among  the  most  popular 
books  on  their  lists. 

Complete  lists  and  net  prices  furnished  on  application. 


HENRY  T.  COATES  &  CO. 

PHILADELPHIA. 


UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA,  LOS  ANGELES 

THE  UNIVERSITY  LIBRARY 
This  book  is  DUE  on  the  last  date  stamped  below 

1  71950 


DEC  2 


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buried 


treasure. 


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